Smart Luggage

..., I don't think those were "smart" elevators. No buttons inside the... person, adding additional push for luggage, wheelchairs, etc. So, when it...

... about final documents and luggage tags and thought since these...   First the cruise letter and luggage tags. They are now being ... get a couple of luggage tags per person and a ...just save them to a smart device if you don't have ...party who sends out the luggage tags and cover letter and ...be nice to still get luggage tags rather than getting them ...is but just like the luggage tags we all have opinions ...

... delay. Smart. On the way back they didn't even load luggage on...

... sub closet where we keep luggage, and wanted me to be... storms as they get older. Smart dog, and we miss her...

..., connected home, home surveillance, eReaders, smart watches, luggage & travel goods.

Not a very smart move should left that guy luggage in airport, she not in the wrong why had to bring that clown luggage to his or her hotel。and 2nd if there's drug in that clown luggage shes fk

...) Underseat Bags (2) 10kg Hand Luggage Self Catering 2 Adults Studio... Holiday Price **£00.00 Hand Luggage Included ***-£4.27 Exclusive... place comes with its own smart swimming spot. When you fancy...

..., "that this is exactly as smart as diving through an ionosphere... an hour to move the luggage a distance the two of... heiress does not drive a luggage tug onto a public highway. ... was done. Now drop the luggage at the terminal, Jenna said, ...

..., "that this is exactly as smart as diving through an ionosphere... an hour to move the luggage a distance the two of... heiress does not drive a luggage tug onto a public highway. ... was done. Now drop the luggage at the terminal, Jenna said, ...

... 4 weeks and received our luggage tags. Are we supposed to... Nancy said it is the luggage tags and the letter.   In .../or put it on your smart phone. I prefer to print ...

..., the Nano100 complies with hand luggage regulations and fits easily into... your carry-on luggage. The built-in retractable USB-C cable... outdoor activities. [Intuitive Display & Smart Operation] The large 5.5cm...

... other partners automatically book into Smart and you get the benefits... free larger piece of hand luggage, hold luggage allowanced and other associated...

... truck ? Too big for our luggage .                  A little gaudy .          More traditional... away from the phubbing . A smart phone in a silly place...

... the Range is the ideal luggage set. Feather light styled trolley... Avenue Range is the ideal luggage set for your next travel... case coming with a rear smart sleeve and RFID zip pocket... * Fixed TSA combination lock * Rear smart sleeve to connect the 50...

.... on Wednesday night, grabbed our luggage, and made our way to... it and ultimately did the smart thing—I dumped it out...

... could go even smaller. The Smart City-Coupé (before it was renamed... like the Audi A2, the Smart had to use a bunch ... developing the small A-Class and Smart, they also developed the very ... of 5 and all their luggage. If Mercedes considered briefly getting ...

.... The PUDU T300 demonstrated heavy-duty luggage transportation and autonomous elevator interaction... Connected Service Ecosystem Unlike conventional smart hotels that rely on isolated...

Renting a car is smart for a family of 6 — way easier than juggling luggage on trains. Just make sure you have an international driving permit and be aware that mountain roads can be narrow and winding. March weather is mild, great timing.

... for every journey. Safety & Smart Control Features Comprehensive Lighting System... rack for carrying cargo, groceries, luggage, or extra items, enhancing practicality...

... complying with Ryanair's free hand luggage regulations. This travelling bag is...shoulder straps of the hand luggage backpack for travelling are ...side buckles and a back luggage strap for secure suitcase ..., travel rucksack, small hand luggage bag, ryan air cabin bag... women Travel Light and Smart: This Ryanair cabin bag 40x30x20...a sleek, water-resistant exterior and smart pockets to keep your travel ...

... to risk if it was smart enough to fake death. "The ... the storm while carrying his luggage along with Jorry and Cuholy. ...

... by your travel agent. Your luggage allowance is as described here...) but EL's website shows Economy smart for that segment... so...

may nakapagtry na po ba mag lagay ng smart tags sa checked in luggage? hindi naman po ba na flag yon nung dumaan sa xrays? Planning to buy din sana para sa upcoming trip namin to Vietnam next week. Thank you! Attached yung balak ko bilhin na tag. thank you submitted by /u/ezpz4567 to r/FilipinoTravel [link] [comments]

I’m currently writing this from the lounge in BKK, minus my carry-on, and I’m about $300 poorer. Just wanted to give a heads-up to anyone else traveling with motorized gear. I’ve been using one of those rideable carry-ons for the last three months without issue. It’s honestly been a lifesaver for my back during these long layovers. It’s not a name brand (just a generic electric suitcase scooter I grabbed off Alibaba), but the specs said it was TSA compliant and under the 100Wh limit. I made it through security at my origin fine. But during the transfer here, the security officer demanded to see the battery label. The problem? The battery is integrated into the frame. You have to unscrew a panel to get to the actual cell, and the external casing doesn't have the voltage stamped on it. Even though I had the manual on my phone showing it was compliant, they didn't care. The rule was: if the battery can't be removed and inspected separately, it doesn't fly. They gave me a choice: miss my flight and mail the bag home, or abandon the bag there and carry my clothes in a plastic sack. I had to leave the unit at the checkpoint. Has anyone else seen stricter enforcement on this? Is this just a Thailand thing, or is it happening in Europe too? submitted by /u/MudSad6268 to r/digitalnomad [link] [comments]

I'm expecting to get roasted alive in the comments, so prefacing this by saying I don't recommend others do this because your experience may be different than mine and it's always risky. Most people who ask about traveling with edibles are met with a "if flying domestic you're fine, if international enjoy jail" attitude. This is a reasonable stance, but the unethical and unspeakable reality is that a few scentless gummies in a bag of real gummy bears has never done me wrong, even in the most dangerous places ever. I've flown through India, London, Istanbul, Scotland, Germany, Dubai, and more with said bag of mostly real candy and had zero issues whatsoever. Let's be real, customs and security are legitimate and I'd never endorse bringing actual weed anywhere. But when food consistently shows up as organic matter, will an agent ever have the time or energy to scrutinize each snack in my bag on the camera screen, zooming in and searching for different shapes within the gummy bag? Even the strictest of places wouldn't go that far, because the focus is on weapons, liquids, and actual physical drugs. Compared to blunts and flower, gummies that don't smell are very unlikely to be detected on a drug strip or be sniffed out by a dog. I'll get off my high horse and admit there were a few times I've been scared. Frankfurt had security immediately after landing, as well as an unlucky additional check before boarding the connecting flight. London has used the paper strips on my stuff a couple times. Dubai was the most risky: they had an additional screening for Americans and actually had someone opening zips, taking out stuff, asking what were in cases etc. But nobody has once questioned me or even looked twice at my bag of haribos, contained in the same ziploc as a few welch fruit snacks, granola bars, and kit kats. The inspector in Dubai didn't even bother to take the bag out. So, does this mean we should be encouraging travelling abroad with gummies? Not unless you're going to be very smart about it and willing to throw your stash away at any point. Never put them in checked baggage where people can inspect your bag without knowing, carryon always. Never keep them in the original packets because if you're caught with something that says THC or cannabis, you're fucked! Most importantly, don't just shove a couple gummies in your makeup bag or that tiny invisible backpack pocket - nothing more suspicious than origanic matter showing up somewhere it isn't supposed to. Realistically, you're not going to get caught with gummies in a real candy bag unless you're stupid about it. Many international security experiences have been smoother and faster than TSA, who really doesn't care. Bottom line, I'm a reckless stoner idiot who willingly trusts my luck every time I go on a plane. And it's quite frankly worth it, especially for the long flights. That flght from Dubai back to America was 16 hours long, and instead of spending it motion sick, miserable, and sleepless like usual, I had the absolute best time of my life! When you're forced to do nothing for hours on end, confined to a chair, cramped between strangers and stuck with the tiniest toilet ever - being a little high makes the experience so much more comfortable. Side note: I'm a a girl in my 20s who is shorter than many middle schoolers, and carries luggage that is either very floral or pink/purple. Many people assume I'm under 18, especially since I wear pretty colorful clothing and have a baby face. sooo that may also be part of why I've been so lucky this far.... TLDR: I have flown internationally many places with a resealable haribo gummy bear bag that has a couple THC gummies mixed in. Never been caught anywhere, being a short girl who looks under 18 probably helps EDIT: clarifying a couple questions here. Firstly, yes I've heard of drug dogs, but I've somehow never seen them in an international airport thus far. The few times I've seen them in America, I've walked by them with gummies and yet they've never stopped at my bags. Maybe I got incredibly lucky, but if I ever chance across something upon arrival the gummy bag is going straight into the trash. Secondly, to all the people saying I have a problem: if I do, it's far less than most people one would call a weed addict. I take 10 mg a week max usually, often split into 2.5 mg or 5 mg doses because my tolerance is fortunate enough to bounce back quickly. In fact, there's been several times I've flown internationally and stayed sober the entire vacation, and only took the gummies for the long flights there and back. So to the "if you can't go one trip without drugs yOU nEed hElP" people, I am NOT getting blasted all the time whenever I'm abroad because that would be a waste of the trip, thank you very much. But when you're stuck in between strangers for 16 hours with nothing to do? No reason to stay sober, and alcohol gives me a headache. Third, will my luck run out eventually? Maybe it will and maybe it won't. I'm less likely to visit the really strict countries, but some are worth taking a T-break for if I do. In Japan for example, I finished the gummies on the flight there even though security had no problems because they're notorious for being very harsh. The flight back sucked and I definitely could've gotten away with it, but places like that and Singapore are not worth it. I also heavily reconsidered what to do in Dubai, but it was an 8 hour layover and I had no issues either. Security barely glanced at the bag of haribos, wedged in between welch fruit snacks, kitkats, etc in a large Ziploc. Was it risky? Definitely, but there was a long line of people and it was very unlikely this guard had the time or energy to take out each snack and inspect it. Fourth, yes I know about Brittney Grinner. I also know that she caught in Russia with a vape, neither of which I plan to travel or have anytime soon. IMO, travelling with a vape is way more risky because if security sees it it's pretty obvious what it is. A haribo gummy bag with visible gummy bears? Less so Lastly, for those who assumed I'm white (shout-out to the commenter talking about baby faced white girls being drug mules) it's pretty bold to assume my race over very little personal info, except for me saying I'm American. I'm Asian and was born here, check your biases submitted by

Every popular product is like this. submitted by /u/AndrewH73333 to r/mildlyinfuriating [link] [comments]

I am NOT the Original Poster. That is Such-Designer5185. She posted in r/AITAH Thanks to u/BakingGiraffeBakes for the rec! Do NOT comment on Original Posts. Latest update is 7 days old. Trigger Warning: mention of drinking and driving and verbal abuse Mood Spoiler: happy ending Original Post: September 5, 2025 So I (21F) am just about to leave from a vacation with a friend (also 21F), and I’m honestly still sick over what happened. A few days ago, she took my expensive Zadig & Voltaire purse, without asking. This purse was a Christmas gift from my sister and has huge sentimental value. I’ve spent the past few years taking really good care of it because it means so much to me. When she took it, she didn’t even tell me. I only found out after the fact that she used it to go to the laundromat, and in the process, used my money - which she also didn’t ask to take. For context, the purse had: -$40 in cash, and a bunch of quarters (a gift from my sister’s best friend’s mom), -€60 in notes, -and at least €20 in coins. So we’re talking over €100 total, not to mention the purse itself. And now? The purse is gone. She lost it. I was obviously upset, not yelling or blaming her, just crying and saying I wasn’t mad, just hurt. I told her how much that purse meant to me and how hard I’ve worked to keep it safe for years. Instead of apologizing, she got huffy with me, rolled her eyes, and said, “How much does it cost? I’ll just replace it,” in this angry, dismissive tone. She has a very defensive and confrontational nature that makes me feel bullied and small, so I find it hard to stand up to her. But it’s not just about the money, it’s about trust, about respect, and about losing something deeply personal to me. Since then, she hasn’t apologized at all. In fact, she’s acting annoyed that I’m upset. Now we’re on the last night of our trip, and I’ve decided to just be neutral and quiet for the journey home. But once we’re back, I plan to stop speaking to her entirely. I feel like she violated my boundaries, disrespected my belongings, and is now making me feel like I’m “too sensitive” for being hurt. But some mutual friends are already making me feel like I’m being dramatic and should “let it go” because “it’s just a bag.” So… AITAH for cutting her off and refusing to speak to her after this? Some of OOP's Comments: Top Commenter: She’s not a friend. She also needs to pay you back for the purse. She stole it actually so she’s a thief so your choice on how to handle that going forward. NTA OOP: She agrees to reimburse me, which I accepted but I haven’t spoken with her further about it as I’ve been too upset to look up the cost of the purse. And I also haven’t told her the amount that was in the purse. I plan to do so in two days time, where I will post the update after I discuss with her my true feelings about this. Commenter: This girl is either one of these people with zero conscience or this OP is lying.. Difficult to determine these days. Reddit is a place of honesty and big liars. OOP: Zero conscience, she was raised the only child in a very wealthy family, and does not understand sentiment and thinks throwing money at the issue makes everything better. To the many people telling her to check friend's luggage: She said she checked the laundromat this morning to check the lost and found and there was no sign of it. I’m going to check her luggage when we land based off good advice here. I’m a bit scared to accuse her of theft as she’s quite an aggressive person. Commenter: [...] Now you mentioned it has sentimental value as it came from your sister. Is your sister passed? Can you not just rebuy the same model? Like I get it. It was a nice gift but it is just a purse. Unless the purse was custom or unique in some way (or your sister passed) I think you're being overly sensitive OOP: It does have sentimental value. I come from a large, rural family in Ireland. We do not have a lot of money. My older sister moved away, and for Christmas one year, when I had not received any gifts for Christmas due a financial rough spot, she bought me that bag as I had turned 18 that year. She is a glamorous, successful woman in her thirties and it meant a lot to me to have something such quality as it was my first time owning anything like that! She doesn’t have to be dead for it to be sentimental. OOP clarifies: I understand where you are coming from, thank you for clarifying. From my perspective - the sentimental value was not that it was a rare or customized bag, it was a gorgeous purse given to me, in a time of need. It was always a dream purse of mine, and seeming that I got nothing else for that Christmas bar some chocolates and skin care along with my first REAL purse as an adult, from someone I love very much, it held great sentimental value. However, I do understand and see where you are coming from. I appreciate your grounded and level-headed POV. Thanks! Commenter: stop being a doormat and people won’t treat you like one. clearly you’re not overreacting and you know that, you just want an army of ppl online coddling you while you let her keep treating you like a pushover. OOP: I am on a different continent with two girls who have been gaslighting me, saying it’s not a big deal. They’re both wealthy and their parents fund their lifestyle, whereas I do not. It’s difficult to call my parents for advice due to constant proximity to the girls and felt I was going crazy so I took it to this sub for advice. Not looking for coddling, believe me - if I didn’t feel the need to take it to this sub, I would have avoided it. Thank you Update Post: September 9, 2025 (4 days later) So I have an update. Thank you to everyone who gave advice or shared support, it really helped more than you know. On the flight home, she asked me to mind her passport in my bag, even though she had her own backpack. I agreed just to keep the peace because I didn’t want to deal with any attitude or fighting. When we landed, she turned to me and asked, “Do you have my passport?” in this snappy tone. I was still hurt and wanted to get one last jab in, so I said, using the exact words she said to me all week about my missing purse, “I was checking my bag the whole time to make sure your passport was there, but maybe it’ll show up when we get off the plane.” I regretted saying it immediately. She snapped in front of other passengers, finally acknowledging that I’d been upset about the purse, but in the most cruel and dismissive way. She said, “Well at least I didn’t throw a hissy fit bawling crying for hours over a purse.” That was the last straw. She acknowledged my obvious upset, yet STILL would not apologize. Once we got our bags at the airport, I told her I wanted to check her suitcase for my purse. I said if she refused, I’d involve the police. She tried to say I was violating her privacy, which is hilarious considering she took my purse and went through my belongings. I told her if it wasn’t there, she had nothing to be worried about. I also made it clear I wasn’t going to touch any of her stuff, that I wasn’t interested in taking others belongings without permission, just checking for what was mine. She was absolutely fuming. Face red, shaking, visibly furious. Then she shoved her bag at me and told me to go ahead. I opened a zipped compartment. Inside was a black trash bag. Inside that was a red Target bag. Inside that, drum roll!!…my purse. All of the money was still inside: the cash, the euro coins but no quarters. I was honestly so shocked I couldn’t even ask why she had it or what her plan was. I just said “thanks” and walked away with my stuff. I got on the bus home and haven’t spoken to her since. I wish I hadn’t been so emotionally drained to have given her a piece of my mind. She’s since blocked me with no apology or explanation. As a side note , her mom (who doesn’t know we’re not speaking) called me at 3am crying. She was saying how badly she feels treated by her daughter and her husband, how she’s constantly belittled. I won’t get into any of what had just happened, but it definitely gave me more perspective. This girl is a cruel, and horrendous person with little to no empathy, and I think maybe a sociopath. Anyway. I got my purse back, but the whole thing left a really bad taste in my mouth. I still don’t fully understand what she was trying to do, and honestly I don’t think I want to. I’m just relieved it’s over. What do you guys think she was aiming to do with the purse? Very little of my money inside was used. So strange. Thanks again! EDIT: I didn’t realise this would gain such traction so quickly. Thank you to everybody! Also - she chronically watches the Smosh YouTube channel where they review Reddit stories like AITA etc I believe. I’m just laughing thinking about if this came up, I feel like she’s so self absorbed she would not clock that it’s about her. Nonetheless I created this Reddit account to specifically post this so it can’t be traced back to me ✌🏻 Some of OOP's Comments: Commenter: Why haven’t you told your friends and her mom about what happened? It’s like you want her to rewrite the story to make you the villain OOP: My friends are aware, and my entire family. They told me they are disgraced by her behavior and to cut off contact with her. The friends on vacation however - whether they sided with her or were actually too afraid to side with me, I’m not sure. I haven’t reached out to them, and from advice from the previous post I am not continuing my friendships with them. I can’t be friends with someone who is too weak too stand up for me. Her mother was drink driving and in a bad spot so I felt it was not the right time to bring up the situation as she was very upset. The mom: Yes, drink driving so was a dire situation and I’m in the midst of trying to get her professional help without the rest of her family knowing. (Sticky situation, they will come at her for coming to me) Commenter: I pity her poor mom so much OOP: It’s actually heartbreaking, the things she was telling me about her daughter last night echoed her behavior towards me on that vacation. Commenter: You should block her and tell her mum what she did OOP: I plan to, when her mother is in a better place. I can’t imagine someone telling her that her daughter is an actual POS would make her feel better at this time. She has a hx of mental health issues and I have to tread lightly. Stealing it: But if she truly was trying to steal it - why not fight a bit harder to not let me look through her suitcase. I’ve seen her be more stubborn. Although, there was an audience of other passengers my friends from the vacation. It’s hard to tell what her motives were. Commenter: This is such a bizarre story. I'm not implying it didn't happen, not at all. She took the bag but didn't use the money inside (except quarters). She didn't dump it either. I wonder if she has a collection of 'trophies' that she has stolen? Her mum seems to be aware that her daughter has 'different behaviour' than most of the others. It sounds like other friends may be scared of her? So that's the mum and possibly friends that are unnerved by her. I can imagine that rage, the rage that she knows you'll find your purse and she won't get away with it. Good for you for sticking up for yourself. I would distance yourself away, far away, for her. The link wouldn't work for me. That 'friend' is not a friend to cause you all this stress when you were on holiday, trying to enjoy yourself. I'm have not not any psychological training, just the University of Life. But, she doesn't sound right to me OOP: That’s what I’m saying!! I’m trying to wrap my head around it all, my family and friends are just as confused as to what her objective was. My dad just put it down to (in his very old country Irish father way) “c*nts are everywhere. Don’t think about it anymore, just don’t give her the time of day ever again” Thank you for your words! Commenter: What a smart way of handling it! If she would have left the airport, you would have never seen it again. Did you hold her passport hostage to get her to give you her bag? I’m surprised she didn’t try to walk out of the airport or something. Were police close by or anything? OOP: Thank you! :))) I gave her the passport directly after she had a go at me on the plane when we landed. We were at the bag drop off in the arrivals terminal, and she helped everyone else get their bags off the belt except me even though she knows I was struggling with the bag weight the entire trip due to my bad back (had surgery on it early June, I have endometriosis lesions all over the ligaments attached to my back :p) so I took that as a “big fuck you”, so I was raging and demanded that I check her luggage, where she kicked up a fuss saying why should I go through her luggage as it was a violation of her privacy (LOL), and I reasoned with her (ill report her for theft, if she has nothing to hide she will be okay etc) until she broke down and let me. At this stage our interaction gained the attention of our friends and nearby passengers so she was embarrassed and let me win and check her luggage. submitted by /u/LucyAriaRose to r/BestofRedditorUpdates [link] [comments]

submitted by /u/Bigred2989- to r/todayilearned [link] [comments]

Friends, the day has arrived! After almost 12,000 miles around Mexico 11,478 miles to be exact! (18,473 kilometers) over the course of 1 year the challenge is over! I posted on this thread when I started the trip and here’s the report now that I’m done. From what I understand, no one has ever visited all 32 states in Mexico recorded & documented the entire experience alone on a motorcycle. This trip was done on a dirt bike (a 2021 KTM 500 exc-f) and my route was more than 75% dirt and unpaved travel. I love camping, so aside from the cities, I slept in my tent as much as I could. It also helps with money right, haha. Right now I'm going to answer 21 of the most common questions people have asked me about this trip. Also, this entire experience was recorded in 61 videos, about 30 minutes each, and can be viewed for free on my YouTube channel. Search "Landon Bishoff" for those interested. Let's go! QUESTION 20 talks about the CARTELS & SAFETY concerns of traveling through Mexico like this. It’s down below because it’s so long! First question... And the most common one... 1) What was my favorite place or state??? It’s apples to oranges the answer is difficult because all places are good for different things. So I’ll clarify it by saying whats my favorite place to ride off-road on a motorcycle? A: The Baja peninsula! (If I was forced to choose specifically Baja Sur) There is a reason baja is popular! You could easily spend years trying to discover all it’s secrets and gems. If you live in So Cal, Phoenix, Vegas, you better be grateful you are so close to it haha. Soooo many places to camp, fast desert washes for the bike, a true “off-road” experience, beautiful ocean on both sides, fish tacos & fresh sea food, big mountains, small towns, fun good people, & it’s very easy to feel like you are remote or in the middle of nowhere (One of my favorite feelings)! In second place, I’d say Nuevo León with Cumbres de Monterrey! Compared to Baja to me this is pretty close! You don’t got the ocean, but that area is just insane to ride through. You feel so tiny seeing how big those mountains are. Third would be the state of Hidalgo! 2) What was your route like? A: I entered the country via Algodones/Yuma Arizona and from there I traveled south all the way across the the Baja Peninsula little by little. I took the ferry from La Paz to Sinaloa where I went to enjoy listening to banda and corridos then entered into the Sierra madre. I crossed into Durango from a little mountain/mining town called Tayoltita. This is where I really got into my first heavily dangerous cartel land. Pretty much just right inside the Golden triangle. I had my first stop & interrogation with the cartel in this area and with blacked out convoys of suburbans with no license plates it was a wild place to say the least. On the way down, I visited 15 states basically along the Pacific side of the country: Jalisco, Michoacan, Guerrero, etc. That took me about 8 months. I move very, very slowly maybe than what the average moto trip would look like. I like to see what it's like to live in these new places and make friends if I can. In Tapachula, Chiapas, I crossed the border into Guatemala and spent a year visiting all the Central American countries. From there, on the way up, I entered through Chetumal, Quintana Roo. I traveled to Cancun and across the Yucatan Peninsula to Merida and then went back to Chiapas to visit friends I made during my time as a missionary in Mexico. After that, I spent about 4 months traveling up to the United States through the interior and on the Atlantic side. When I got to Monterrey I dashed across the country just essentially paralleling the US border, but much lower. I went to the city of Chihuahua, then made my way to copper canyon. From there I went up through Sonora then my trip ended in the same place it started back in Yuma. I grew up in a small town called Blythe, California, but now live in Idaho. After crossing the border I went up to Blythe and then reconnected with my parents! It was a crazy feeling being back in the states on that dang dirt bike that somehow carried me so far! I won’t like, I cried riding home thinking about getting to see my mother knowing I didn’t let her down and kept myself safe, despite so many people saying I would be killed for what I was attempting! 3) Where are the best beaches??? It's difficult, but if I had to tell someone that you can only go to one place to see beaches in Mexico, I would say... A: Baja California Sur! It's not just for La Paz and Los Cabos either... The best, in my opinion, are further up... Baja Sur also wins points for having the best sport fishing there in Los Cabos, which is recognized worldwide! If anyone wants to invite me to Los Cabos to go fishing, Dm’s are open haha. There's also surfing if you like that... Second, I'd say maybe Jalisco or Oaxaca... Quintana Roo has that blue water and and that’s cool, but for me I love seeing the mountains fall into the sea and the Gulf side doesn't have that as much... So the Pacific side wins easily! Honestly that entire coastline is pristine! The spread on these comparisons isn’t big guys, they are neck and neck. Michoacán, Nayarit, it’s all great! Go to the pacific side for beaches. 4) Which state had the friendliest people? A: The truth is, Mexicans in general are just great people! There isn’t a state, in my opinion, that stands out above the others, but.... I do have a more specific answer for you that I've seen not only in Mexico, but in every country I've visited on my motorcycle. People that live out in the “country” are consistently friendlier & kinder than people who live in the cities. Especially when it comes to treating a stranger... I can’t speak in terms of their family relationships, who does this better or anything like that. But without a doubt, the cowboys, farmers, or small town folk are always open to helping a stranger. I can't tell you how many times I've been invited to spend the night at a ranch or just given food. These people in these places are easily my favorites! (Once in Zacatecas, I asked an older man washing a horse for directions, and the next thing I knew, I was doing laundry at his house getting ready to go to a party. This was around Christmas time so it was semana santa. It was a massive party with the entire town and lots of relatives visiting from all over. I was treated like a king there, and I ended up stayed there for about three days, working on the ranch and meeting others!) 5) Where is the best state for food? Before I offend anyone, remember this is just my opinion haha... A: The best Mexican cuisine is in Oaxaca! Almost tied with Mexico City... But it's not a fair comparison because Mexico City is one of the largest cities in the world, so any food you want at any price point, you can get it! And without a doubt, the city can easily attract some of the best chefs in the world! So it's not the same, but I also feel like Mexico City loses its first place because it's so big and vast... What Oaxaca has that Mexico City doesn't... is that Oaxaca has the magic! I think it's because everything grows there too, and they are still very connected to all the traditional cooking methods. With firewood, clay pots, local spices, and that all adds up to a distinct flavor that's not consistently found in other states in the republic! Another thing... If I have to say the worst "traditional" dish in Mexico, it's the “torta ahogada” in Guadalajara haha... 6) What's the most beautiful city in Mexico? A: I'd say Puebla! Remember, I'm talking about large cities in the country... Smaller cities, but not like towns, I'd say easily Guanajuato takes it! There's a reason it's so popular! It's very different with the tunnels and very beautiful, surrounded by mountains! 7) What is your favorite “pueblo magico” or magical town in Mexico? A: San Cristóbal de las Casas! The weather is very pleasant, you're surrounded by pine trees, and there's so much to see all around. It has chocolate pozol and Tascalat... It's worth going just to try those two drinks, which are from Chiapas in general. I also have a special place in my heart for the Tzotzil people because I lived there for a year as a missionary. I even learned a Mayan dialect called Tzotzil or (Batzikop). I'll talk more about my experience there below. Other than that I think Mazamitla(Jalisco) and Batopilas(Chihuahua!) are great! 8) What is your favorite small town? A: I'm a little weird about this part because I like really, really small, rural places. I wouldn't say I have one that's better than the others, but for example, one I really like is San Francisco del Mar Pueblo Viejo in Oaxaca! Technically, it's an island, but there's a bridge to cross to get to it. I don't even know if there are any hotels there. And honestly I don’t think I would recommend going there to everyone (kinda safety thing/you might see it and think there’s nothing here haha.. It’s a very unique place. It's consumed by estuaries and lagoons. You like shrimp, well they got it there! Endless amounts of it for cheap haha! You have to go around a bit, but you can go and see the Pacific Ocean there, and the sandy coastline goes on for miles and miles to just absolutely nothing. Las Adjuntas in Hidalgo is another one I like. That whole area in Hidalgo you could spend some time hanging around, lots to see and the mountains are so dense it takes long to move around Others: Santiago Yosondua in Oaxaca, San Ignacio in Baja Sur, San Miguel Tlacotiopa in Vera Cruz, there are others, but they're secrets to keep for myself, haha. I wouldn’t want to rob you of the joy of stumbling on them yourselves haha 9) Which state would I recommend the least to people? A: Tlaxcala! I'm going to cheat a bit with my answer because Tlaxcala is so small, it's easy to just bully it. More than climbing Malinche, which is something I would recommend. There's nothing there that you can't achieve or see in other states. It's a bit of a comparison of apples to oranges, really. If I have to choose a larger state, I'd say Campeche! More because it's very flat, and when you compare it to its neighbors, I feel like you can achieve the same things in Yucatan or Quintana Roo and do it in an easier way. It has ruins, cenotes, and pollo campero haha, but again, it's like having two brothers who are more handsome than you. You're handsome, but standing next to your brothers, you just don’t make the cut haha. But I'll tell you this at the same time... The city of Campeche is a lot of fun, and I was surprised by that place and I would recommend visiting it. It has a very interesting history, being a fort against pirates along the coast. I feel like in about 10 years it'll be like Mérida in terms of tourism. Campeche has everything Mérida has, but the ocean too! The Malecón(boardwalk) there is also really cool, and at night it comes alive with people walking, skating, and biking. I really liked Campeche the city. 10) What was your least favorite place in the country? A: There's only one place on my entire trip that when I left I just didn't like, and it's called "Las Pozas" in the town of Xilitla, in the state of San Luis Potosi. Xilitla is beautiful, don't confuse me with that, but the history of Las Pozas doesn't really catch my attention or inspire me. At the same time, it's not such a strong answer either; for example, I would never tell someone to not visit it. I just didn't like it. 11) Where are the most beautiful women in the country? This one's for the men! And maybe some women I guess haha A: Jalisco and Michoacán! Traditionally Los Altos de Jalisco are accepted and know for this, but honestly Zapopan and Santa Anita in Guadalajara are just as good in my opinion! It’s easier to get to and you can appreciate beautiful people there just as much. Morelia in Michoacán is another spot. 12) Who has the best accent? A: For me, the most fun is the northern part of the country... Someone who tells me "Oiga" every time. I really like this way of speaking. Obviously, “chilangos” or people from Mexico City are perhaps better known for their accent, and that's very fun too, but I like the northern accent the most! Chiapas has one as well, and it's really really slow and kinda softer spoken. They throw in "pues" or "pue" all the time too! 13) Who knows how to dance the best? A: People in Mexico City, there you find it all the Bachata, Salsa, cumbias, and the best teachers too. Second place is in the northern states with “norteno or banda” kinda style of dancing! 14) Which state has the best nature? A: Chiapas! Canon Sumidero, the jungle around Palenque, Rambutans in Tapachula, it’s got the ocean, waterfalls all over the place, it's a lot! During the rainy season it is just so lush and wild feeling. 15) Where is the place I feel I need to return to and see more of? A: The states of Hidalgo/Queretaro. This whole area of mountains and valleys, for example, Barranca de Metzitlan in Hidalgo and Mission Bucareli in Queretaro... I feel like I missed a lot to see in these states, and what I saw while I was there surprised me. As a gringo, these weren't places I had heard about at all. Let alone the need to go visit them. 16) Which state surprised you the most? A: San Luis Potosí... “Sotano de las Golodrinas” or the Cave of swallows.. Gosh that is a unique place to see. 1,600 feet just sheer vertical drop into this massive cave! In the mornings and afternoon tens of thousands of birds fly in and out at once! The waterfalls and rivers too! It just kinda threw me off, how impressive it was this state and again, as a gringo, it just wasn't something I had on my radar ever. 17) Where is the best place to go sailing or boating? A: Here I would say the Sea of Cortez... there's a reason you can go there and at certain times of the year and see Russian yachts! Yachts that look like small cruise ships with helicopters and everything... There's plenty of protection for the boats, fishing, and you can also be there during hurricane season. I've been on boats in this area and I've also sailed from Colima to Acapulco. Another place and it actually has a pretty good sailboat community is Zihuatanejo. I went there for Sail fest and they do a good job putting that event on! Plenty of Americans & Canadians down there if you didn’t speak Spanish and didn’t want to feel so isolated. 18) What are my top 5 places I’d recommend to everyone to visit in Mexico?? 1) Chichén Itzá, Palenque, and places like that... I know it's very touristy, and maybe it doesn't feel so special to be there with so many people... But if you can be there and arrive at a place, imagining the significance it all and how many people inhabited these areas. How many families and people walked those lands during times of those ancient civilizations... It’s incredible to think about and see! It's also the original history of the country. Aside from that you even have everything else in the area, like cenotes, beautiful little towns, and the beach. 2) Second is the state of Oaxaca! You have to go to Oaxaca during “dia de los muertos” day of the dead! You also have to go for the food, go to Hierve del Agua, and maybe the beach. 3) 3rd is Baja California.. either of it’s two states. I won't tell you where because the magic is finding these places for yourself sometimes, but you have to take an off-road trip in Baja California and camp under the stars on the seashore! Fish and live slowly. 4) Cumbres de Monterrey! Friends, there's so much to do and see in this area! 5) Lastly I’d say is Mexico City... The reality is that you can accomplish so much by visiting this city, and it's so large. I feel like truly getting to know it could take years. The other reason is that you arrive and the city serves as a base for visiting many other things in the surrounding area as well. 19) What's the best big city to live in? A: If it were me, I'd say Monterrey. It has a lot of good jobs, its mountain views are beautiful, it's close to the United States. I feel like it's a good place to have a family, and it has a lot of opportunities. But most of all, it has the Cumbres de Monterrey, and in my opinion, this is one of Mexico's greatest treasures. Second place would be Guadalajara! I've stayed in Guadalajara for a total of around two months through my life, and I have several friends there. It's definitely a place where I could be happy living. Also, what Monterrey lacks is access to good beaches. Puerta Vallarta or Nayarit are easy to get to. Also, the motorcycle and side by side culture there is big! It has events like the Vallartazo, and since I like off-road stuff, I need it to be very accessible, haha. Honestly, there are a lot of good options :) Also I speak Spanish so that changes things. If I didn’t know any Spanish I might choose some different spots. Also being single or married changes it. Single I would do Mexico City/ Guadalajara.. Family probably Monterrey. If you like big cities Mexico City takes it easily. You can find literally anything you want there. I just don’t like cities so it’s not number one for me. 20) What are your thoughts about safety and the cartels? I’m going to respond to this question in great detail, because it’s very important that people know my stance on others doing something like this. It’s easily the most important piece of information on this post. When I told people I was going to ride a motorcycle alone across Mexico, they told me things like this... But Landon it’s super dangerous! They'll kill you, take your motorcycle, steal your things, or maybe all three... Gringos told me that, and even Mexicans in the US did too! Guys, we already know the most obvious danger in Mexico is the cartels. Dangerous people.. My answer is that first of all, you have to know and follow the rules of traveling in Mexico... What are they? 1) Be respectful! For example, don't be speeding all fast in small towns, throwing dust past cars or people, etc. Also, know that it's not your home, nor my country, and people don't owe you anything! Not even basic respect... You have to respect them, but you and I don't deserve anything... Thinking like this helps you humble yourself, and assures that you stay considerate of others. 2) Understand that at the end of the day, it's these people's (the cartels') decision how they want to treat you. And before starting the trip, I came to peace with this idea. That there are a percentage of things beyond my control and issues and situations that are difficult to influence. That I should be okay knowing that my life could be in the hands of others and there was nothing I could do about it. I felt like it wasn't as much of a 50/50 risk of losing my life, but maybe with things beyond my control, a 15% risk. Even if you do everything right, sometimes you end up in the wrong place at the wrong time... and the bad luck falls on you... Nothing in life is as “promised” as we think it is, and tomorrow we could die walking to church. 3) Don't drive at night! This is common in the motorcycle world, and probably the simplest way to keep yourself safe. It's funny too because why would you even want to drive at night, you can't even see any of the scenery?? 4) In “hot” areas or very active/dangerous areas, always know where you are and where you are going! Not just the directions, but the actual names of the places and towns. Always go from town to town, don't detour and never explore on roads that have no exit or lead to dead ends.You can do this in Baja or lots of other places, but in general it’s just not a good look. 5) Never lie! Always tell the truth, even if you might think lying would give you an advantage when you're being interrogated. 6) And lastly, always listen to your gut! If you’re christian the Holy Ghost, if your gen z “the vibes” haha Even if it is inconvenient or it seems ridiculous just practice obeying that voice in your head. In total, I had about eight different interactions with cartels during the trip... Without mentioning their names, I encountered armed individuals in Sinaloa, Durango, Michoacán, at the Guerrero/Oaxaca border, Chiapas, and indigenous tribal land... Most of my interactions were in completely rural and isolated places... and I can tell you that the overall sum of all these experiences was good. The strongest experience was one day when I was stopped three different times while traveling through a mountain range where poppy plants were plated for opium production. The last interaction, a man made me get off the motorcycle with an AR15. He called over his radio then a truck arrived, and again with the same questions from his comrades hours before. I could see they weren't comfortable with my answers, and in the end, they didn't understand why a gringo would be there. I kinda cracked on my patience and told the man, "Look, I have nothing to hide, and I’m in no hurry." Do what you need to do! Check all my luggage, my WhatsApp, social media messages, etc. I’m in no rush! So they took me to a house to go do that. It wasn’t far and they even let me ride my motorcycle. One guy walking in front of me and others in the truck behind me. When we got there, I spoke with an older, significantly smarter and really smart kinda guy! He was respectful and didn't waste much energy trying to intimidate me. He just asked questions and variety of them. After about 10 minutes, he switched from interrogation mode, to seemingly more of a curious type of demeanor. He was interested about my trip, and finally, showed a lot of interest and even encouragement about what I was doing. When we started cracking jokes and all of us laughing I kinda knew I was just hanging out at that point! They told me I could leave and find a hotel or stay with them. It was dark by then so I stayed there, and we spent the night relaxing, talking more and enjoying dinner together. I even got to take a shower! Set my tent up outside, and I left the next morning. My way of thinking before the trip was that if you aren’t involved in anything bad, you don't have to worry. My first interaction with armed people was in the mountains between Sinaloa and Durango, near Tayoltita. That was the first test of the theory. After my interrogation there on the side of the mountain at a check point. I asked the men "if I was stupid to travel there," and they told me the same thing! If you aren’t up to no good, then you’re fine to be here! However with all that, I'm going to say something... If I were Mexican or I looked Mexican, I wouldn't go to all the places I went. The concern for these people is other cartels coming to get information, or worse, do something like attack someone. So, as a white person, you have a great advantage! When I say I don't work for anyone there, they believe me. And something even better than that... is it’s easy to believe me! Because even though I'd like to hide that I'm a gringo at times, I can't! I have an accent, and just the way I look it doesn’t look latino... Sometimes there are disadvantages to being recognized as a gringo, but in these situations, it helps me! Because when I say I'm a gringo just traveling, they don't have to put their trust in me; they see it as a fact, an absolute reality... and that helps me. If you're Mexican, you'll have to know how to resolve that. The main idea is that you want to avoid any possibility of them needing to trust you! Another advantage of being a gringo is that, most of the time, these people don't care about the value of my things or the money they could get from me! It’s not worth the potential negative attention that could be drawn to the area! Especially attention from the United States. The sad thing is that as a Mexican, I feel they have less patience and less need to preserve the life of a Mexican over a gringos. BUT at the same time... It's not to say that you're invincible as a gringo, of course not! Again, you have to follow the rules, and if you act stupid for some reason, they have no problem making an example of you. All cartels & factions have different strategies, and some operate with insane amounts of order... I’ve even met people on the road who have no connection to the cartel groups and like it when they're there. Because they enforce order, this old lady once told me, "I don't have to worry about being robbed or assaulted here... These things don't happen here! I feel very safe." She liked the order they brought in... Other groups may take more violent forms and more public displays of power... So nothing is guaranteed, but my way of thinking was that it would be very, very difficult to put myself in a situation where I couldn't at least save my life... and as I told you, I was at peace with the idea of losing everything, even my life though I didn’t think it was likely. I felt that I had the talents and wisdom to avoid a situation escalating to that point. Obviously, my ability to speak Spanish is another crucial thing! And it goes with the same idea: it's bad to make them trust you or make their job more difficult. Being able to speak and communicate is the most basic step in being able to explain why I'm there on their land. To conclude this topic... I would say as a Mexican, you can travel to any state in Mexico, and I recommend it! But maybe in the hot zones, don't travel on dirt roads as much. You don't have to travel so much in the middle of nowhere... Buy you can go have a trip through the country and have an amazing time! Now as a white person or someone who just obviously isn’t Latino, I would say you can get away with going to more places maybe.. But why would you want to! I have my reasons why I waned to do it and they are listed below this.. but most people aren’t going to be there and you don’t need to! If Mexico interests you I highly recommend checking it out & 100% just like anything that is dangerous, there is a way to navigate, mitigate, and avoid those risks! 21) What made you want to visit all of Mexico in the first place? A: My love for Mexico began in my youth. I'm from a small farming town called Blythe on the California Arizona border. Most of my friends growing up there were Mexican. I have memories of my friends' mothers and grandmothers, and seeing them as other motherly figures to me. They taught me Spanish phrases and, of course, always fed me. Every culture has its strengths and challenges, but one challenge “white” culture has is being somewhat colder or slower to act in kindness with like strangers for example. Something I constantly saw growing up was that Mexican culture was just way warmer and the people were always full of love. I saw that Mexicans knew how to joke, laugh, and not always have to take things so seriously, and this gave them the ability to be happier compared to white people (in my opinion). When I finished high school at 18, I went to Chiapas and Oaxaca to live as a missionary for 2 years. Up until this time, all my experience with Mexicans was with Mexicans who lived in the United States and NOT with those who lived in the republic. The news shown in my country always focused on every danger in the mexico, every drug confrontation, Mexico's weaknesses and every negative. (That's how the news is, right haha the negative) And one way or another, my adolescent mind created a separation. The separation was like this... Mexicans in Mexico = bad and dangerous... Mexicans in the United States = good and incredible! I even sometimes saw Mexicans in my country think and speak like way... During my time as a missionary, I quickly learned that was a silly thought. And of course, it wasn't true! For two years, I enjoyed and learned from various kinds of Mexicans: rich people in cities like Tuxtla Gutierrez, poor people, farmers, every type of person you can imagine. I also spent a year living in the Indigenous communities above San Cristóbal de las Casas in the highlands of Chiapas, where I learned the Mayan Tzotzil dialect! Everywhere I went, my experience was the same as how I was treated by Mexicans! Just great & kind people! There's a huge gap in understanding between how Americans (and even some Mexicans too) understand Mexico’s way of life. Mexico is a great and incredible country! Both its geography and its 130 million people living there! I can't explain everything, but I've felt like I owe the Mexican people for everything they've done for me throughout my life. And that made me want to one day help show the world what Mexico is really like. I wanted to help return the respect this great country deserves! How to do it? Only one way, that I could realistically do! Fight the false ideas with indisputable evidence... Go in person to each of its 32 states on a motorcycle and record everything! Go to cities, ranches, dangerous lands, etc... And I did it, and you don't have to trust me; you can see it all uploaded on my YouTube channel "Landon Bishoff." There are 61 videos, about 30 minutes each, showing the trip! All of this was something almost sacred to me, and I feel very grateful to God for being lucky enough to be able to have done it! I know it's a great right that not everyone has. That's why I’m sharing it here with everyone. Mexico... Thank you for always having your arms open to me, and always treating me with love. See you, and I love you always! submitted by /u/Lando__24 to r/overlanding [link] [comments]

I am NOT OOP, OOP is u/Throwaway_ventting Originally posted to r/TrueOffMyChest My friendship blew up on a trip to Japan Trigger Warnings: xenophobia, racism, disparaging eating disorders, ableism, misogyny, victim blaming Original Post: September 23, 2024 Finding out my friend of 5 years was an absolute AH when taking her on her first trip to Japan one year after I moved back from there. What did she do?: Wouldn’t add to the itinerary at all but complained every single day when we got there. I took her to popular stations in Tokyo since it was her first time and we had 7 days…but she wanted to go to the beaches and rise at 5am and stay out til 2am like she does in Mexico. Compared everything to Mexico, even wanting to tip a restaurant owner in USD because “I do it in Mexico”. Wanted to tip everyone and argued the whole time when I told her don’t do it, it’s rude and when I got my Japanese friend to educate her on how to give proper thanks, she finds one person online who said its “not required but appreciated” and wouldn’t stop pressing me about how it’s so good to tip. She would ask me how my legs were doing and I’d answer honestly like “yeah they hurt” and she later mocked and berated me saying it made her feel bad I was complaining about my legs. I never said they hurt out of my own accord nor did I stop what we were doing or ask for breaks. If she asked I said yeah but she’d rather I’d lie. I asked if she was thirsty while we waited for open hours and she said no, so I went to find me a coffee shop to grab one real quick. She goes “I don’t even want to go there, you should’ve taken me to a real cafe”- girl I’m just grabbing ME a drink since you said no. Doesn’t believe in itineraries yet hated everywhere I took her so got her friend back home to look up places for her. She had 6 months to look up anything to add but she “doesn’t believe in itineraries”. Got mad I didn’t order for her when she didn’t ask me to help. Said “if we were in Mexico I would’ve ordered for you.” All she said was she was thinking about getting a bun today…she didn’t end up ordering it herself because she didn’t want to point to it and ask the cashier??? I was standing ten steps away from her, there was no one in line and we were the only ones in the store. Not sure why she didn’t even attempt to order a bun in the case or ask me to help her. Started saying she should’ve gone on this trip with friend A or friend B to my face. Said she didn’t like “touristy” areas aka Shibuya, Asakusa, Harajuku…and wanted to go to rural areas while she doesn’t even speak Japanese and was relying on me to quite literally hold her hand for everything. She’s older than me but both late 20s btw. Said she was going to leave the trip early if we spent a day with my sister at our Japanese friends house. She wouldn’t eat sushi because they have “worms in them”, wouldn’t go to karaoke because “they were listening”, said I made her cry which she’s only ever done at her dads funeral (wow), called dried squid a “gag gift she can get her family”, accused me of cutting her luggage and wouldn’t take out yen from the atm so I did and she paid me back. Tried to tell me data works fine compared to our pocket WiFi and that we can just leave the WiFi at the hotel when I asked her to hold it for us. (I lived in Japan and will not go anywhere without a pocket WiFi) This isn’t even half of it….a whole 7 day nightmare. For the first time in my life I actually slept through an entire 9 hour plane ride on the way back. ETA: I totally forgot some of the more f’d up things like asking “do you have an eating disorder?” Or telling me she was going to smack my hand because I had it near my nose as I was choking on so much secondhand smoke my throat was getting raspy. And trying to convince me it was my fault that I was getting inappropriate stuff happening to me (ex. man chased me down the streets of ikebukuro wanting to go to a hotel but it’s my fault because I was standing alone at the station) ETA 2: anyone want to guess the profession she’s pursuing? Relevant Comments OOP needs to get new friends and how is the friend? OOP: I told her off a day after we landed then blocked her everywhere. + She’s 28. I’m 26. OOP on ending the friendship after the trip OOP: Something about trips and friendships…This girl you would never guess because if you met her she’s “mamma bear” - polite, well mannered, fiercely independent and caring. I doubt ppl irl would believe this is her. Once she was out of her element, she turned into the literal spawn of satan. + I wanted to leave her so bad but I couldn’t bring myself to because it’s a very foreign country to her. Once she threatened to leave the trip early though, I literally started looking at flights for her and showed her the options lol. That pissed her off even more because I was “on my phone” all throughout dinner. OOP gives an example of her friend’s reaction when going to a place for breakfast OOP: No literally. I left a bunch of stuff out bc it’s ALOT but our compromise to visiting my friends house was I would go alone for a couple hours while she waited at the hotel. Before I left I convinced her to try going to the konbini (which was right next door to our hotel) alone to get breakfast and she did, came back and said she would never do that again. Wanna know why? Some other foreigner saw her and was trying to chat with her. Idk if he was real or not but she was like “yeah see? Nope I’m not doing that again!” + She’s Mexican which is why she kept bringing it up and telling me she was going to force me to go to Mexico so I can see how hard it is to order stuff or whatever. And that she wouldn’t go to my friends house “because how would you feel if I took you to Mexico and wanted to visit my BIL?” But honestly I could’ve used that situation and thrown her misogyny right back at her face. “Oh a man talked to you? You must’ve looked approachable or it’s what you’re wearing” -everything she said to me lol + She thought I was crazy to suggest this and that I was wasting her hard earned money to “sit around and hang out” and said that when people want to hang out “it means ALL day” and everyone around her knows that hang out means all day (also said that “later means later today”which was a whole different thing I digress) but instead of asking me how long she flips her bananas and tells me she should’ve gone of this trip with friend A if I wanted to see friends. This is what made her cry   Update/Part 2: September 27, 2024 So I got a lot more responses and questions that I thought I would get on my last post. I figured I would share more about it for those who were interested. I also wanted to thank everyone who told me their own story of disaster trips. Some felt really relatable! Also big thank you to those who asked me for Tokyo recommendations and those who said they would’ve been glad to have me as a guide. That made me really happy! I actually had two friendships that ended over that trip and overall I felt really taken advantage of and under appreciated. Thank you all for helping sort some of those feelings by sharing your thoughts. Of course this was a huge lesson learned and I’ll do my best to move forward with more caution and maturity. A little more context to what I went through: Got mad I told her no, I don’t need her to hold my bag. Got mad I told her I didn’t want to walk 1 hr to our destination because she chose the route with 1 train with a “40 min” walk (I chose one with 3 transfers and a 10 min walk). I said I put my compressions in my check-in on accident and she replies “well I’m smart and packed mine in my backpack”. Told me she couldn’t help with adding to the itinerary or join study sessions because she had family issues she didn’t want to tell me about and didn’t understand how that doesn’t give her a pass to complain the whole time. She would agree to leave an area but then make snarky comments about how she liked the previous area more. Told me sarcastically “I’m always right” when I tried to tell her she was reading a Japanese persons response wrong. As if I didn’t know the concept of tatemae and honne lol. Blew up at me for being on my phone at dinner - I was navigating the whole time and we shared a hotel/bed, the only time I got to check in with my fam is when we sat down to eat. Kept saying her family (who was tracking her) was asking why we’re at a laundromat or why we’re at a mall and not outside. Would compare me to friend A like “oh she would’ve understood my joke!”. Used my other friend problem I was having, against me saying she understands why my friend did what she did. Yapped about how she hates Selena Gomez for writing a song about her ex and when I told her nearly every singer/song writer does she told me to list names and so I listed people and she said “no, but name male singers though!”. Heard my fave group XG play in shibuya and when I got excited she goes “EW” (only because they’re a girl group). Acted like me making an itinerary meant that we couldn’t walk into random shops along the way. Anytime we went somewhere spontaneously or didn’t make a reservation she would be like “see? this is how I travel. I just go with the flow because I do better under pressure”… Anyways, so some people had mentioned how I didn’t see any of this behavior prior to going on the trip and I’ll best honest and say there were red flags in our relationship which I saw and I actually did distance myself from her BUT after I moved to Japan and came back, I was in this weird position and really wanted to reconnect with my old friends and establish a support system again. So I decided to start fresh with her which was obviously a mistake and I got what I deserved. She started changing during the pandemic in which her and friend A got really close as we were barely talking at the time. I talked to a mutual friend of ours recently and we both suspect that friend A had a part in fueling her toxic behavior. We always knew her as a sort of mama bear that took care of everyone and is super well mannered and self righteous. Everyone irl likes her and looks up to her but as one commenter pointed out, these “good” qualities are actually a disguise. She needs to be in control and once she was out of her element and not in control, she completely lost her cool and was actually very verbally abusive. Which brings me to the next answer to everyone’s question, she is pursing to be a detective or police officer. It’s more fitting rather than ironic. She appears disciplined, morally superior and dominant but she’s simply judgmental and controlling and it’s scary to think someone like her will have more power and influence. The next thing I want to address is people asking why did she even want to go to Japan. I kind of think it’s simple, I invited her and said I know of good places and can take us around. I think a lot of people in my life want me to take them to Japan because it’s easier to go with someone who knows how to travel there. She wasn’t someone who ever dreamed of going to Japan but the opportunity came up and she took it. She’s more of a koreaboo tbh but nevertheless she was excited to go. She even started texting friend A on our trip saying they were gonna make it up to her and go to Kyoto next year and that I could join lol. Even though she told me to my face “no offense but I’m never traveling with you again”. The last thing people are asking is what I said to her when I ended it. So when we got back to the states, basically I started blocking her on everything. I argued with her for 7 days and everything that came out of her mouth was a complaint or insult so I had zero energy to go back and forth. I already know that nothing will change her mind or open her eyes. She texted me asking why she couldn’t find my username anymore and I said this: “Girl, no way we are friends anymore after the way you behaved all throughout the trip. Never in my life have I heard a grown adult complain that much and not know how to communicate without an attitude, gaslighting, and being condescending. You are ethnocentric, extremely judgmental and ableist. You say a lot of racist micro-aggressions and misogynistic things. And the fact that people can’t even be honest with you or that you can’t be honest with others is wild. You’d rather not hear the truth bc honesty makes you feel bad. The entire time you talked about how you normally do things with your friends and family and all it told me was that you’re not very adaptable! But yeah there was way too many unpleasant behavior and things said that showed your true colors and I don’t want any further involvement.” Then I blocked her. But I got a new phone and saw she read it. So that’s that! I’m not hurt but I’m really bummed about my trip to Japan being ruined.   DO NOT COMMENT IN LINKED POSTS OR MESSAGE OOPs – BoRU Rule #7 THIS IS A REPOST SUB - I AM NOT OOP submitted by /u/Choice_Evidence1983 to r/BestofRedditorUpdates [link] [comments]

I'm looking into the different smart luggage tags to track my bags in case they get lost or stolen. As you may be aware there are lots of them in the market. But, one thing I don't understand is how they stay connected to wifi to be tracked in the first place. In the product reviews, this seems to be a key issue. Are you thinking of getting one? Do you guys use them, if so which one and is it effective? submitted by /u/polo3polo to r/travel [link] [comments]

This story happened back in 2020 during the pandemic. At the time I worked for a medical supply delivery company. We would got to different locations, usually a personal house or residence, and deliver home care medical equipment like beds, IVs and Oxygen devices. It was a hard job that was severely understaffed but I needed the money and most of the customers were super appreciative. Then there was Boomer Lady. She was a very stereotypical Boomer. Nice house she they probably bought 50 years ago for a nickel and 2 chickens, Faux News on the TV 24/7, extremely demanding and unreasonable, the works. Her husband was the one in need of care. He was clearly not doing so well physically and mentally and while I never learned exactly what his health problems were it was very clear he was having trouble breathing as he was wheezing constantly. I had to deal with Boomers all the time in this job and while they will often moan in that Boomer way about most thing from my poor work ethic (while carrying a bed up 3 flights of stares by myself) to my long hair to whatever else they felt like that day, they never really gave me much issue with the actual products. They might have some standard questions about how the buttons work but this stuff was built with Boomers in mind and worst case they usually had a kid or grandchild around I could explain this to instead. So as long as I kept my mouth shut and did my job I could usually get in and out without much issue. Not this Boomer. I came to deliver a portable oxygen concentrator. If you've never seen one imagine a black device about the size and shape of a small luggage bag that comes up a bit past your knee. These are medical grade and often used in hospitals and can work for days continuously without issue. I had dropped off dozens of these before and never had any complaints about them. But Boomer lady refused to take it because she hated the color black. She was refusing a life saving medical device that her husband clearly needed just because she didn't like the color. Well my boss was a customer is always right kind of guy and I had to go back and pick up every different model of concentrator we had. Most of them were also black and all about the same size, but we did have one that was baby blue and another that as tan. They all work equally effective so as long as she takes one it doesn't matter. But she still hates the colors and wanted a dark purple one for some reason. She also complained about the size and wanted a much smaller model about the size of a dinner plate. I told her we don't carry those models because they are very expensive and only only meant to last a couple of hours, not days like this model. She insisted she get a smaller model that could actually last for days (which doesn't exist) and is also in purple. I tell her we can't deliver that and it's take what we have or nothing. She chooses nothing. I practically beg her to take some air tanks at least. The air tanks we carry are medical standard. They are a lot bigger and bulkier being made of metal and going up to your thigh, and only last 3 or 4 hours. But if there is an emergency they will last long enough for an oxygen concentrator to be sent over or for him to be taken to the hospital. She demands a smaller model, about the size of an aerosol can. I tell her we don't carry those because they are only good for about 10 minutes and meant more for recreation and once again, it's what we have or nothing. She again chooses nothing. I explain this all to my boss and have no choice but to leave without giving them anything to help the husband breath. I do leave some breathing masks so that when they do find a concentrator they like they can use those, but besides that they don't get anything. Cut ahead about 10 hours to 2 am. The company I worked for had a 24 hour service line where we would deliver anything at anytime of the day. Mostly pointless as most days there were no delivers and most of the few we did get were just people looking to yell at someone. But I got overtime so whatever. This time it was a real delivery as the Husband has had a turn for the worse and the Boomer Lady wants the concentrator now and doesn't care about size or color all of a sudden. I ask if they also want more masks but my boss informs me that Boomer Lady still has the ones I gave them earlier so they just need a concentrator. It takes around 2 hours for me to go pick up the concentrator then drive to their house to drop it off. Guys, she didn't have any masks. She threw them away. Without the masks the concentrator doesn't work. So now I have to drive almost an hour back to our warehouse to pick up some masks and then drive back. Except I don't because about 20 minutes after I leave I get a call from my boss saying that the Husband DIED. And of course this is somehow my fault. Boomer Lady rejected every bit of help for petty reasons, lied to me and my boss about what she had and refused to take her husband to the emergency room instead deciding to wait 2 hours for something that might not have even saved him in the first place, but this is somehow my fault. I quit the next day. I refused to take the blame for this ladies absolute stupidity. And I refused to let my boss try to pin this on me when he was well aware of her insane demands and constant lying. I don't know what happened to her or the company after this (they had three workers including myself and all were quiting within a week of each other) but I also don't care. Nothing ever came back around to me so I don't have to worry about being sued or anything. I'll just let this lady (if she's still out there) continue to blame me for her mistakes. Edit: For those people suggesting this was an intentional act to get the husband killed, I highly doubt that. Some people really are just this stupid and anyone who's had to work with Boomers in any medical field will attest they really can be this petty and self destructive. And while it didn't really translate well in the story, this women really did not seem that smart. As for those claiming I should have reported this to the police, as I stated in the story my boss was on the Boomer's side. He was fully ready to back her up despite everything he knew. It would have been my word vs both the Boomer woman's and my Boss and I had no video or anything as proof. There is no way the Police would have taken my side. It sucks but that's what a terrible boss will do to you. submitted by /u/Jolttra to r/BoomersBeingFools [link] [comments]

I see it all the time on the internet, but seeing it get used more frequently by people I know IRL rang the alarm bells in my head. For example, friends told me recently that they want to "invest in good luggage" while still owning a perfectly functional one, "invest in skincare" when what they meant was to buy a new sunscreen, etc. I get that they want to upgrade to a nicer one, but using language to dress up actions doesn't change what is actually being done: buying something. My friends are smart and they seem to be doing well financially, so I trust that they have it all under control. So I felt no need to dissuade them, and just gave them my reviews of what I have used. But I am worried about the people who aren't and can get tricked by ads and influencer marketing. There's so many influencers on TikTok and IG these days who peddle random stuff and tell everyone it's an investment when the truth is it's just an extra expense. I don't think there's anything wrong with treating ourselves or upgrading things to have a better quality of life if we can afford it, but I feel like the language we use affects our mentality — in this case mentality towards buying — and I feel like it can become a slippery slope to justify unnecessary expenses. I think we should be prudent enough to remember that even though we can afford it, expenses are still expenses. Am I paranoid in thinking this? Maybe I'm just paranoid because I used to fall for marketing hype more when I was younger (not that I'm immune to it now, but we're improving here!) Side note: I remember when I was a young teenager, I read this series called Confessions of a Shopaholic and when I turned into a young adult I found myself saying the same things and using the same justifications and lines of thinking, which made realize I had to change lol. submitted by /u/zenobia-r to r/unpopularopinion [link] [comments]

Game Information Game Title: Dead Space (Remake) Platforms: PC (Jan 27, 2023) PlayStation 5 (Jan 27, 2023) Xbox Series X/S (Jan 27, 2023) Xbox One (Jan 27, 2023) PlayStation 4 (Jan 27, 2023) Trailers: Dead Space Official Launch Trailer | Humanity Ends Here Dead Space | Extended Gameplay Walkthrough Dead Space Official Gameplay Trailer Developer: Motive Publisher: Electronic Arts Review Aggregator: OpenCritic - -1 average - -1% recommended - 0 reviews Critic Reviews ACG - Jeremy Penter - Buy Video Review - Quote not available Areajugones - Juan Linares - Spanish - 9 / 10 Dead Space Remake preserves and improves the sensations of the 2008 installment and brings back to the front one of the best survival-horror of the last 20 years. A remake that besides being a nice facelift introduces some playable mechanics and nuances in a certain way the original work to improve it. Atomix - Alberto Desfassiaux - Spanish - 96 / 100 Motive Studio knock it out of the park. This remake of Dead Space is far superior than the original classic. Great additions, impressive graphics, outstanding audio and more, makes this game a most have. AusGamers - Kosta Andreadis - 9.7 / 10 Although this might have been (or hoped to have been) the expected outcome by fans, it does bring to light the idea that the horror genre is the ideal candidate for the remake treatment. CGMagazine - Clement Goh - 9 / 10 Dead Space (2023) is a worthy remake that leaves EA's classic sci-fi horror adventure almost untouched and adds a number of upgrades for space-exterminator Isaac Clarke, his harrowing tale and the menacing undead that keep fingers on triggers at all times. COGconnected - Jaz Sagoo - 87 / 100 Dead Space is a cult classic that is considered one of the greatest horror games in the medium. Some may argue that the game didn’t require a remake, however, Motive Studios are faithful in its approach and improves on the original. Although the visual update makes each step a disquieting nightmare, the enhancements made to the combat and narrative are what make the real difference. While the game carefully follows the path laid by the original, the number of refinements makes this the definitive version. Checkpoint Gaming - Charlie Kelly - 8.5 / 10 It feels excellent to be back in the world of Dead Space. ComicBook.com - Tanner Dedmon - 4.5 / 5 For likely many others and I, the only hopes for this Dead Space remake were to be able to play through the game once more (hopefully with a jump scare or two) in a way that didn't feel ancient and clunky. The Dead Space remake far outstrips those minimal expectations, and though it may be premature a cliché to say it's raised the bar for remakes, it's certainly established a dominant foothold in 2023 and in the upcoming string of horror remakes fans have to look forward to. It's again not perfect, but it strives to be better than the original, and that's something other remakes should look to copy. Daily Star - Tom Hutchison - 5 / 5 It’s atmospheric, scary and adrenaline-inducing space fun. A top remake. Destructoid - Eric Van Allen - 8.5 / 10 Dead Space as a concept still holds up, and the reworking EA Motive has provided highlights its best features while shoring up old pitfalls. Sci-fi survival horror fans should get what they want out of this: the return of a classic, with gorgeous graphics and some new twists, but the same old boot-stomping good time. Dexerto - Sam Smith - 5 / 5 In many ways, Dead Space is still the game you remember from 2008, but this is the way it was supposed to be played. Despite a few nitpicks, the Dead Space remake improves on the original in every conceivable way. Not only that, it reminds us of the potential the franchise has and makes us look forward to future chapters in the series. Digital Trends - Giovanni Colantonio - 4 / 5 Dead Space (2023) feels a little redundant considering the original still holds up, but a well-executed remake still results in a standout action-horror experience. DualShockers - Elijah Beahm - 8.9 / 10 Dead Space Remake is damn good fun, with interesting ideas and appreciation of the greater franchise that most remakes lack. This isn’t some studio trying to massively reinvent an IP, but working to fit the best pieces together so it can grow anew. It's a fitting tribute to Visceral's best days - maybe not a perfect rendition, but few cover songs ever are. EGM - Mollie L Patterson - 5 / 5 Dead Space is one of the true legends of the survival horror genre, and EA Motive's new remake does the original game full justice while also introducing a variety of fantastic new additions and reworkings. Other than some slight disappointment in its visuals on a technical (but certainly not artistic or atmospheric) level, this is a remake that finds a near-perfect balance between retaining the heart and soul of its predecessor and reanimating its body in some unexpected (but positive) ways. Eurogamer - Edwin Evans-Thirlwell - No Recommendation While a fine piece of craft and a sumptuous reworking of the setting, EA Motive's Dead Space remake sheds a little of the 2008 game's enchantment. Eurogamer.pt - Adolfo Soares - Portuguese - Essential As a result, this remake of Dead Space obviously manages to largely supplant the original. It gives you a new life and a phenomenal rejuvenation. In this way, it reaches a new audience of players who are thirsty for titles of this genre and with a quality label, but also gratifys all the unconditional followers and fans of the franchise. It is a game that should not be lost, has to be played and tried down to its smallest detail. An almost perfect remake, as it should be. It glorifies the legacy built in 2008, later perfected in 2011 in Dead Space 2. Well, now I'm going to pack my bags and luggage for the New Game+. Cut off their limbs. Everyeye.it - Giuseppe Carrabba - Italian - 9 / 10 Today, more than ever, Dead Space is an unmissable game for both fans of the genre and fans of the 2008 original. Explosion Network - Ciaran Marchant - 9 / 10 Motive Studio has created an experience for new and returning fans of the series that goes beyond the expectations of a remake. GAMES.CH - Benjamin Braun - German - 90% One of the best survival horror games gets one of the best remakes we've seen so far, that is what you need to know about the new version of Dead Space. If you're a fan of the original game or just of the genre, it's a need to play. GGRecon - Kiera Mills - Not Yet Unfortunately, due to a late game code, we could only gather first impressions of the game based on the first few chapters. As it stands, however, the game has been immensely enjoyable and is a must-recommend so far, providing us with hours of gruesome, deadly fun in the void of space. GRYOnline.pl - Krystian Smoszna - Polish - 9.5 / 10 Dead Space is an example of a perfect remake. It improves the graphics, improves the mechanics, and adds something new. Game Informer - Marcus Stewart - 9 / 10 Rather than reinvent the wheel, Motive made Dead Space look nicer, play better, and preserved the core of the experience. Its new flourishes add to that enjoyment instead of subtracting. Game Rant - Dalton Cooper - 4.5 / 5 The Dead Space remake improves on the 2008 original in every category with significantly upgraded graphics, gameplay, and more. Game Revolution - Mack Ashworth - 8 / 10 For those who already love the franchise and are simply hoping for a spruced-up version of the original game, then the Dead Space remake is an easy recommendation, so long as you’re okay with paying the price (or waiting for a sale). However, for those who have no pre-existing affection for Isaac and his dismemberment skills, more convincing is likely required. Happily, even with my modern expectations, the Dead Space remake still delivers a fantastic narrative, a wonderfully presented setting, and compelling gameplay that satisfies from the first terrifying moment until the horrific last. GamePro - Tobias Veltin - German - 88 / 100 A dream for horror fans! Thanks to numerous customizations and chic visuals, the best version of one of the best horror games of all time. GameSpot - Richard Wakeling - 9 / 10 The Dead Space remake may not feel entirely necessary, but it improves upon the original with some smart new additions to almost every aspect of its design. Gameblog - French - 10 / 10 Dead Space Remake is more than just a remake, it's a whole new game. Motive has done a titanic job to give a second life to one of the masterpieces of the survival horror genre. Not only its graphics are a real slap in the face and its sound design is absolutely fantastic, but he few gameplay adjustments and the work on the level design offer a real added value. Even those who know the original game by heart will be surprised. An incredible dive into horror and a real "new gen" slap in the face. Now we only want one thing, the sequel, and quickly! GamesHub - Nicholas Kennedy - 4 / 5 It can’t be overstated just how much a Dead Space remake always seemed like a sure thing, and after my time with it, that perspective hasn’t changed. It’s easily one of the best modern horror games, and the fresh lick of paint to really bring its grimy, snarling interpretation of sci-fi horror into sharp new relief is very welcome, especially when it maintains such faith in the source material. GamesRadar+ - Joe Donnelly - 4.5 / 5 Motive Studio's Dead Space is a horror remake done right. GamingBolt - Shubhankar Parijat - 10 / 10 Dead Space is one of the best survival horror games ever made, and one of the greatest remakes of all time. It takes a masterpiece of the genre and allows its biggest strengths to shine brighter than they ever have, while also improving upon it in meaningful ways with smart changes and additions. Motive Studio has delivered an instant classic and a true giant of the genre. GamingTrend - Richard Allen - 90 / 100 The Dead Space remake is exactly what a remake should be. Quality-of-life improvements help the game flow better and meet modern standards, while the updated graphics bring the terror to life in vivid detail, providing a grotesque beauty to the nearly non-stop carnage. Despite the years which have passed since the game's initial release in 2008, Isaac's trek through the USG Ishimura remains as enthralling and terrifying as ever. Geek Culture - Jake Su - 9.6 / 10 All in all, our expectation of the Dead Space remake being just a marginally updated version of the cult classic was blown out of the water just a few minutes into the journey. Instead, what we found was an astonishing and impressive experience that will set yet another high bar for its contemporaries to follow, a true survival horror adventure chocked full of surprises both obvious and subtle, and a fabled return to pure ecstasy while trepidation coloured every step. Dead Space has never looked or felt better, and a homage has easily surpassed its inspiration and become a flag bearer for the genre. If this is what Motive Studio can do with a remake, then we look forward to losing our minds further for even more Dead Space in the near future. Generación Xbox - Pedro del Pozo - Spanish - 97 / 100 It is a new starting point for the saga that should not be missed, but neither should they exploit. Of course Motive Studios, which has on its staff some former members of the Visceral Games that brought us the original in 2008, should continue on this path. Definitely, we can consider it from now, as one of the essentials of this 2023 and the current generation. God is a Geek - Chris White - 9 / 10 Dead Space is a fantastic remake, taking what was great about the original and adding plenty of smart and impressive features. Hardcore Gamer - Adam Beck - 4.5 / 5 Motive Studio has done the unthinkable with Dead Space. It has turned this iconic, incredibly memorable survival horror game from fifteen years ago into an even more immersive and engaging experience. Hobby Consolas - Daniel Quesada - Spanish - 91 / 100 It doesn't matter if you knew the game or not. The remake of Dead Space is a must-try experience. Of the best in the horror genre. IGN - Tristan Ogilvie - 9 / 10 Dead Space is a superb remake and undoubtedly the definitive way to experience one of the best survival horror shooters that Capcom never made. IGN Italy - Francesco Destri - Italian - 9 / 10 Dead Space remains one of the best survival horror games ever, and the 15 years that have passed are hardly felt at all in terms of structure, gameplay, combat-system and setting. If all remakes were like this… Impulsegamer - Tory Favro - 4.5 / 5 A remake that is in many ways superior to an already classic game. Get ready to be scared. Inverse - Joseph Yaden - 10 / 10 Dead Space is a shot-for-shot recreation of the original that manages to recapture the 2008 game as you want to remember it — meaning it’s actually better than ever. Kakuchopurei - Alleef Ashaari - 90 / 100 [T]he Dead Space Remake is the definitive edition of the first game. While the story and levels are similar to the original, the improvements (both visually and during gameplay) and new mechanics make this worth playing even for those who have already played the original 2008 game. LevelUp - Pedro Pérez Cesari - Spanish - 9 / 10 Of course it is not perfect and for this reason the original Dead Space should never be erased from the history of video games, but that does not mean that, despite a few failures, we are facing a remake that deserves to be played. Metro GameCentral - GameCentral - 7 / 10 An excellent remake of a not-quite-classic survival horror, that nevertheless makes a convincing argument for the continuation of the series. MondoXbox - Davide Mapelli - Italian - 9 / 10 Dead Space brings us a remake that is respectful of the original title but with many new features that improve it in every respect. A milestone in the horror genre and a title you absolutely must have in your collection. Multiplayer First - Alex Co - 9.5 / 10 Simply put: It doesn’t matter if you’ve played and finished the original Dead Space or not, Motive Studio’s remake is a perfect reimagining of the franchise. This is how remakes should be, and I’m very glad Motive nailed it out of the park. Hopefully, this means that we’ll see a Dead Space 2 remake (which is the best one in the trilogy in my opinion) announced soon. Rejoice, franchise fans! Motive has resurrected the franchise and with style! Dead Space 2023 is a fantastic way to start the year for horror fans, and is one indoctrination worth experiencing. One More Game - Chris Garcia - Buy The Dead Space Remake is a stellar effort from Motive Studio that respects the source material but also makes just enough meaningful changes to gameplay to suit modern audiences and provide a fresh experience. It wasn’t an easy task, considering how the original is held in high regard, but the results cannot be denied, and they have indeed lived up to lofty expectations. One highlight of the game is its superb audio design, which keeps players on their toes, elevating encounters and maintaining tension levels high all throughout. Paired with chilling visuals and lighting that evoke an atmosphere of dread, the USG Ishimura is even more terrifying than ever before. PC Gamer - Sean Martin - 84 / 100 The Dead Space remake sets a new standard for the future of the survival horror series⁠, even if it isn't the sequel I've been pining for. PCGamesN - Philip Hayton - 9 / 10 Motive's Dead Space Remake is a gloriously grotesque glow-up that embraces the original horror game's robust formula, and only a slight amount of jank keeps it from achieving perfection. PCMag - Gabriel Zamora - 4 / 5 The Dead Space remake is a brilliant shooter that once again delivers gruesome body horror and satisfying gunplay, but spices up the familiar elements with new weapons and frights. PSX Brasil - Bruno Henrique Vinhadel - Portuguese - 95 / 100 Dead Space marks the triumphant return of a franchise that didn't deserve the end it had years ago. Revamped visuals, improved level design, interesting new features, perfect use of sound and lighting techniques, along with the same sense of space horror as before – all of this delivers one of the best survival horror ever. PlayStation Universe - Neil Bolt - 9 / 10 With this remake, Motive has managed to treat the original Dead Space with the utmost respect whilst rebuilding it to be perfect for today. Almost every improvement serves to enhance the reputation of a horror classic. Dead Space should be the blueprint for creating a truly exceptional remake. Polygon - Michael McWhertor - Unscored The Dead Space remake changes all the right things PowerUp! - Leo Stevenson - 6.5 / 10 In the moment-to-moment gameplay, it literally feels identical, but that's because it is. Anything new in Dead Space doesn't enhance the experience, it detracts from it. So, we're left with a worse version of a game that looks vastly superior. Press Start - Brodie Gibbons - 9 / 10 EA Motive could have taken a path of least resistance in delivering a Dead Space remake, though I'm thankful for everything they've poured into what is a tremendous reimagining of one of gaming's truly iconic horror games. It's gorier than ever, the story is made whole, encompassing lore elements once merely pieced together by its fan base, and feels like a genuinely fresh twist on the original. Push Square - Liam Croft - 8 / 10 Dead Space has been brought back in the most faithful manner possible. Rock, Paper, Shotgun - Liam Richardson - Unscored This is the Dead Space you remember but with a brilliant new sheen, luxuriously improved in small but considered ways. Comfortably familiar, but excellent nonetheless. Screen Rant - Jason Hon - 4.5 / 5 The Dead Space Remake severs the bar to raise it. Shacknews - TJ Denzer - 9 / 10 Not only is the 2023 Dead Space remake good, it takes everything that made the 2008 game good and makes it better, even outright swapping out certain weak points of the original to make a top-to-bottom must play for anyone looking for a good scare in their games. Sirus Gaming - Noel Lontoc - 9 / 10 Even though it's 10 years late, Dead Space (2023) is Electronic Arts' apology letter after the mayhem of Dead Space 3. With the release of this remake, it has been demonstrated that good development and listening to what the public wants is essential in providing a breath of fresh air to an old game. Spaziogames - Domenico Musicò - Italian - 8.8 / 10 Dead Space returns with a remake that knows well how to improve the original game. Newcomers can now play the best version of the beloved survival horror classic. Stevivor - Jay Ball - 8.5 / 10 This new version of Dead Space is one of the few remakes that has managed to slot in that little window of time where it’s not been too soon or too long since the release of the original. It brings with it nostalgia, and almost enough change to make it feel fresh and familiar at the same time. For some this will be good news, for others not so much. For me, having loved every minute of only a single play through back in 2008 I was elated by the fact that I had pretty much forgotten almost all of the details in the game. The Games Machine - Daniele Cucchiarelli - Italian - 9.5 / 10 The remake of Dead Space follows the track of the original game, obviously (and considerably) improving it from a technical point of view and adding or modifying some gameplay elements. The result is a sci-fi horror adventure that will please both veterans of the series and thrill-seeking newcomers. TheGamer - Jade King - 4 / 5 Dead Space is a triumphant remake that draws strength from familiarity instead of allowing its archaic origins to become a vice. This is now the definitive version of Isaac Clarke’s first chapter, one that doesn’t aim to reinvent his character, but to outfit him with a more relatable and nuanced arc that will likely set the stage for other games to come. TheSixthAxis - Nick Petrasiti - 9 / 10 EA Motive have done incredible work with the Dead Space remake to bring a horror classic up to date, injecting true horror back into the genre alongside considered changes and expansions to the original story. It's hands down one of the best remakes ever made, and it's like playing Dead Space for the first time all over again. Welcome back, Isaac. Twinfinite - Dylan Chaundy - 5 / 5 Taken as a whole, though, Motive Studio’s Dead Space remake is an unmitigated success that builds upon its predecessor’s story in small yet meaningful ways. VG247 - Kelsey Raynor - 5 / 5 Ultimately, Dead Space is a game that a lot of horror developers can learn from when it comes to creating suspense and a feeling of dread in its players. And as far as remakes go, Dead Space has me thoroughly pining over a decade-old series. That’s a success, if you ask me. VGC - Chris Scullion - 4 / 5 Dead Space is a visually stunning remake that is both faithful to the original, and modernises what it needs to. The remake naturally looks significantly better than the original, but it's the addition of voice acting for Isaac and the more natural dialogue this produces which is the most effective update here. The game isn't without its lulls but the overall experience is just as thrilling as it was 15 years ago. Wccftech - Nathan Birch - 8 / 10 The new Dead Space is a mostly-successful revival of a survival horror landmark, offering atmospheric new visuals and a series of precision updates to combat, level layouts, and the game’s scary bits that ought to surprise and excite veteran engineers. That said, there was room for Motive Studio to push ever further, as some game elements still feel a bit dated. Dead Space should satisfy long-suffering fans of the franchise, but compared to the latest, greatest AAA horror competition, it’s no longer a cut above. We Got This Covered - David Morgan - 4 / 5 2023's Dead Space remake masterfully treads the line between doing too little and too much to revitalize a game that has aged so well. Many of the mechanical changes will go largely unnoticed by the average player, but they do wonders to bring this classic back in line with its contemporaries. WellPlayed - James Wood - 9 / 10 Dead Space is a remarkable achievement in design on all fronts. A loving and intelligent remake that reminds players of what has been lost in AAA games and what can be found again if you just know where to look. Windows Central - Samuel Tolbert - 5 / 5 Motive Studios delivers a remake that isn't just a faithful adaption of Dead Space for the modern age, but a love letter to the entire franchise. New narrative tweaks, the addition of a talking protagonist, and open exploration across the ship add up to a stellar horror experience. submitted by /u/Turbostrider27 to r/Games [link] [comments]

/forward ​ What happened to Southwest Airlines? ​ I’ve been a pilot for Southwest Airlines for over 35 years. I’ve given my heart and soul to Southwest Airlines during those years. And quite honestly Southwest Airlines has given its heart and soul to me and my family. ​ Many of you have asked what caused this epic meltdown. Unfortunately, the frontline employees have been watching this meltdown coming like a slow motion train wreck for sometime. And we’ve been begging our leadership to make much needed changes in order to avoid it. What happened yesterday started two decades ago. ​ Herb Kelleher was the brilliant CEO of SWA until 2004. He was a very operationally oriented leader. Herb spent lots of time on the front line. He always had his pulse on the day to day operation and the people who ran it. That philosophy flowed down through the ranks of leadership to the front line managers. We were a tight operation from top to bottom. We had tools, leadership and employee buy in. Everything that was needed to run a first class operation. When Herb retired in 2004 Gary Kelly became the new CEO. ​ Gary was an accountant by education and his style leading Southwest Airlines became more focused on finances and less on operations. He did not spend much time on the front lines. He didn’t engage front line employees much. When the CEO doesn’t get out in the trenches the neither do the lower levels of leadership. ​ Gary named another accountant to be Chief Operating Officer (the person responsible for day to day operations). The new COO had little or no operational background. This trickled down through the lower levels of leadership, as well. ​ They all disengaged the operation, disengaged the employees and focused more on Return on Investment, stock buybacks and Wall Street. This approach worked for Gary’s first 8 years because we were still riding the strong wave that Herb had built. ​ But as time went on the operation began to deteriorate. There was little investment in upgrading technology (after all, how do you measure the return on investing in infrastructure?) or the tools we needed to operate efficiently and consistently. As the frontline employees began to see the deterioration in our operation we began to warn our leadership. We educated them, we informed them and we made suggestions to them. But to no avail. The focus was on finances not operations. As we saw more and more deterioration in our operation our asks turned to pleas. Our pleas turned to dire warnings. But they went unheeded. After all, the stock price was up so what could be wrong? ​ We were a motivated, willing and proud employee group wanting to serve our customers and uphold the tradition of our beloved airline, the airline we built and the airline that the traveling public grew to cheer for and luv. But we were watching in frustration and disbelief as our once amazing airline was becoming a house of cards. ​ A half dozen small scale meltdowns occurred during the mid to late 2010’s. With each mini meltdown Leadership continued to ignore the pleas and warnings of the employees in the trenches. We were still operating with 1990’s technology. We didn’t have the tools we needed on the line to operate the sophisticated and large airline we had become. We could see that the wheels were about ready to fall off the bus. But no one in leadership would heed our pleas. ​ When COVID happened SWA scaled back considerably (as did all of the airlines) for about two years. This helped conceal the serious problems in technology, infrastructure and staffing that were occurring and being ignored. But as we ramped back up the lack of attention to the operation was waiting to show its ugly head. ​ Gary Kelly retired as CEO in early 2022. Bob Jordan was named CEO. He was a more operationally oriented leader. He replaced our Chief Operating Officer with a very smart man and they announced their priority would be to upgrade our airline’s technology and provide the frontline employees the operational tools we needed to care for our customers and employees. Finally, someone acknowledged the elephant in the room. ​ But two decades of neglect takes several years to overcome. And, unfortunately to our horror, our house of cards came tumbling down this week as a routine winter storm broke our 1990’s operating system. ​ The frontline employees were ready and on station. We were properly staffed. We were at the airports. Hell, we were ON the airplanes. But our antiquated software systems failed coupled with a decades old system of having to manage 20,000 frontline employees by phone calls. No automation had been developed to run this sophisticated machine. ​ We had a routine winter storm across the Midwest last Thursday. A larger than normal number flights were cancelled as a result. But what should have been one minor inconvenient day of travel turned into this nightmare. After all, American, United, Delta and the other airlines operated with only minor flight disruptions. ​ The two decades of neglect by SWA leadership caused the airline to lose track of all its crews. ALL of us. We were there. With our customers. At the jet. Ready to go. But there was no way to assign us. To confirm us. To release us to fly the flight. And we watched as our customers got stranded without their luggage missing their Christmas holiday. ​ I believe that our new CEO Bob Jordan inherited a MESS. This meltdown was not his failure but the failure of those before him. I believe he has the right priorities. But it will take time to right this ship. A few years at a minimum. Old leaders need to be replaced. Operationally oriented managers need to be brought in. I hope and pray Bob can execute on his promises to fix our once proud airline. Time will tell. ​ It’s been a punch in the gut for us frontline employees. We care for the traveling public. We have spent our entire careers serving you. Safely. Efficiently. With luv and pride. We are horrified. We are sorry. We are sorry for the chaos, inconvenience and frustration our airline caused you. We are angry. We are embarrassed. We are sad. Like you, the traveling public, we have been let down by our own leaders. ​ Herb once said the the biggest threat to Southwest Airlines will come from within. Not from other airlines. What a visionary he was. I miss Herb now more than ever. submitted by /u/AlphaBreadDaddy to r/SouthwestAirlines [link] [comments]

I could see the following advantages of keeping the tag on the outside: Theft deterrent. If a potential thief sees a SmartTag looped onto the luggage then he would be very unlikely to steal it. Another perspective is that the security would be front and center so a thief might think that he could just clip it off and be scot free. But realistically, I don't think he would do that because I think most luggage theft is a crime of opportunity and a thief knows he would be busted beyond a shadow of a doubt if he was caught clipping a SmartTag off of a bag lol. Scannable by others? Not sure if I've read that SmartTags can be scanned by others for info. Ie with devices other than Samsung phones in order to get contact info, etc. Can you please confirm? I could see the following advantages of keeping the tag on the inside: Seems like a SmartTag could potentially get pretty beat up looped to the outside of the bag SmartTag is IP53 rated. My take on that rating is that a splash of rain here and there shouldn't be an issue. But leaving it out in the rain for more than a few seconds could be somewhat of a concern. Sometimes my checked baggage is damp when I receive it. So if I keep a SmartTag in the top pouch of my luggage then it may be exposed to a very small amount of secondary moisture but much less than potentially getting rained on as part of an outside luggage transfer. And it seems like a small amount of secondary moisture from the top pouch would be pretty inconsequential for an IP53 rating What are your thoughts and opinions on this? submitted by /u/random503 to r/samsung [link] [comments]

My 39th birthday was last week. Months ago I was talking with my mom about a part of our state that I love to visit and she mentioned that she has never been there. I told her we should go together sometime and we started planning it. We ended up deciding on going there for my birthday. During the planning we realized that my mom, my brother, and I had never been on a trip together, just the 3 of us, so we invited my brother too. My husband was fully supportive of us taking this trip and would be staying home with our 3-year old son and our dog. Before we left last week my husband gave me the gifts he bought me for my birthday. He got me some comfy pajamas, a sun hat, and some good wine and cheese to bring with on the trip. Normally, I would be totally OK with that gift as we don't really splurge on bday gifts anymore. But he had been talking about getting me a smart watch and new luggage for my trip ever since we started planning it. He knows I can be kind of picky about gifts as I have exchanged some of the gifts he's got me in the past for different colors or options. But this time I told him to just pick something out for me as I want those things for the trip. He offered instead to go shopping with me so that I could pick out exactly what I want because if I take them on the trip and don't like them, it's not likely I could return or exchange them. I thought that was a good idea, but life got busy and before I knew it, it was the week of our trip and we hadn't had a chance to actually go shopping together. So the time comes for us to leave and part of me was expecting my husband to surprise me with a new watch or weekend bag, but he didn't. I admit I was pretty disappointed that he didn't take the initiative to just get me those things on his own. I tried not to let it bother me during the trip, but it was always kind of in the back of my mind. After we got back, I mentioned to him that I was disappointed that he didn't get me the watch and bag like he said he would. He told me that he thought we had agreed to do it together but I told him he knew how busy we were and it wouldn't have been much effort for him to just do it on his own. He got offended and told me that I just spent thousands of dollars on a nice, relaxing trip with my family while he stayed home and took care of everything, and I'm complaining about a watch and a bag? I told him that he knew how much I was looking forward to having those items for my trip and I'm just disappointed that he didn't realize that and take the opportunity to do something special for me. He apologized for "ruining my trip" but I know it wasn't sincere and he's just telling me what he thinks I want to hear. I offered to go shopping with him sometime to pick them out and he told me to just go do it myself. Now I feel like crap and I know he's mad at me for being ungrateful for the things he did get me and for allowing me the opportunity to have a trip like that with my family. submitted by /u/bdaygiftaita to r/AmItheAsshole [link] [comments]

I am not the Original Poster Original posts by throwaway4620048486   Originally posted: February 8, 2016 I'm trying to write this in a way so that no one will be able to research and find out who I am (or my brother is). But it's the Internet and everyone's a super sleuth. My brother went missing years ago. And when I say "missing," I mean that his case was declared one of those "creepy unsolved mysteries." It was on the news. I distinctly remember my parents interviewing for the news in our living room. I think I know what happened to him. I was very young when he went missing. I barely remember him, but I do remember that I loved him a lot. He would pull me around our block in a wagon. Most kids his age didn't do that. The days before he disappeared, I remember him staying home and babysitting me. I stayed in my room and played Nintendo 64. Throughout the day, a guy came over. I remember him. He was older, almost our dad's age. My brother made me go into my room whenever I heard the doorbell. Later, after the guy left, my brother would ask me not to say anything about the guy. With my brain only being focused on video games and extra dessert at that age, I agreed. I didn't care, nor did I comprehend the gravity of the situation. The day before he disappeared, I remember the older guy coming over. I was in the kitchen and remember looking up and seeing him kiss my brother. They hugged. They didn't care that I saw them. The older guy waved at me and I waved back, then I kept watching cartoons. I fell asleep on the couch and woke up to my brother whispering outside our front door. "Don't worry, he's asleep," he said. The older guy said something I couldn't hear. Then my brother said something I couldn't make out, but I made out the words "visit them" or maybe he said "visit him"? Either way, I know the word 'visit' was in his sentence. The man raised his voice and said no. Then I heard "plan" and "city." Then I fell asleep again. The next morning--the day he disappeared--my parents were at work. My brother was acting very strange. I remember he kept checking the clock. In the afternoon, I remember him picking me up and asking me if I wanted to go in the wagon. I was too hooked on Nintendo 64 and said no. He almost begged me and I said no again. Then he told me he had to run to our neighbor's house for something, I don't even remember what he said. I said okay. He reminded me to not open the door for anyone, only mom and dad. I shouted at him "OKAY!" because Super Mario was getting on my fucking nerves and he wasn't helping. He gave me a hug and told me he loved me and left. He never came back. All these years--decades--later and I think he was in love with that man. I know he was. The memories randomly came flooding back to me earlier, I'm not quite sure why. But it has been taking over my thoughts lately. I can't sleep because I keep thinking about it. I think my brother left with that man and they ran away together. Or maybe something worse happened. But I don't think that's the case. My freshman year of college, I was part of a sports team that got national recognition. I remember my team's picture was on ESPN and with our university's name. A few days later, I got mail at my dorm. It was a gift basket. I thought it was from my parents, so I didn't read the card. I threw it away immediately and ate what was in it, but it was nothing but candy. Nerds, jolly ranchers, Tootsie Rolls and Hershey's Kisses. I called my dad and thanked him for the gift basket and he said he didn't send one, neither did mom. Then I got to thinking: all of those candies were what I used to eat as a kid. Literally all I ate for the earliest years of my life were those candies. I tried to find the card, but I couldn't. Then I began to think about how my brother would wheel me in the wagon to the gas station close to our house so I could get candy after dinner, even though it was a punishable-by-death "no-no" from mom. Months later, during Christmas, I got an unmarked Christmas card. The only thing written on it was a :) smiley. Since then, I've heard nothing. No one I know sent that card. I have never responded. I wonder, every day, if he's out there. I have never told anyone this. When the police asked me what happened that day, I told them that he went to the neighbor's because that's all I remembered, honestly. It destroyed my parents. My mom became addicted to pain killers and my dad has had three extra-marital affairs (which, I know this tragedy is no way an excuse to cheat, but it sure didn't help). It has ruined our family, and maybe my brother knows what he did. Maybe he regrets it and knows he can't come back home. But if I could see him today, I would just want to tell him that he is always welcome in my home. I love you so much, brother. We have so much catching up to do. Please come home. Please.   [UPDATE 1 - April 12, 2016] Title:My parents kept my brother a secret from me It's 4pm and I'm drunk lol These past few weeks have been insane. I posted on here before....my brother went missing a long time ago. I thought he ran away from home. Long story short, I got into contact with some detectives that our family has known since my brother went missing. When I started asking questions, they told me that my brother was no longer on any missing persons registry. When I asked what that meant, they told me that he was removed per my parent(s) request. I asked my parents--my dad, actually. My dad ignored me. My mom told me my brother is alive and okay ("as far as she knows"). They found my brother years ago--a very, very long time ago--and found out he was living with another man. He's gay, and it disgusted my parents. He tried reaching out to them. They told him they didn't want anything to do with him and that I didn't remember him adn wouldnt' want to see him..... I went ballistic. My parents weren't fazed by it. They sincerely hate my brother for who he is--for being gay. They kept him a secret from me all my fucking life. My brother missed the birth of his nephew, he missed my wedding, graduations, EVERYTHING. just because of my parents. they lied to me. I've been able to get a phone number and contact information from police officers. my brother left it all open in case anyone from our family wanted to contact him. i still can't work up the nerve to call him. the address i have for him is across the fucking country. but he's alive. my brother is alive. i'm drunk as fuck right now because i can't deal with any of this. i haven't talked to my parents in weeks and i never plan on speaking to them again. not for what they've done to me, or my brother. this is real and it happened. it happened--it is happening right now. i dont know how to process this at all. my parents let me blieve my brother was dead or kidnapped forever, when in reality he just ran away and when he wanted to come back they disowned him im fucking crying right now. how could you do that? fuck you, God. fuck you christians and jesus. idont even know i'm so fucking--i'm sorry   [UPDATE 2 - May 7, 2016] Title:I met my brother that was "missing"! Here’s an update for you all: The day after I made my last post, I woke up and called into work. I told my wife (who is essentially my confidant and I tell her everything) the whole story. She wasn’t really surprised; she’s not a fan of my parents much. But like many of you, she told me to call the number I was given for my brother immediately. She insisted on it. She took herself and my son out for a day together so I could be alone to talk with him. I dialed the number about seven times before I actually pressed the “call” button. It started ringing and I hung up. Then I got frustrated at myself and called the number back. It rang and rang and I got a voicemail, but it was the automated voice, not anyone else’s. I didn’t leave a voicemail. I thought the whole thing was ridiculous. I called my wife and told her to come home and she refused until I had talked to someone on the other end of the phone. About an hour of pacing and drinking two glasses of scotch at 1 o’clock in the afternoon, I called the number again. It rang three times. I panicked. I hung up. But this time, the number was calling me back. I swear to whatever God(s) above, I thought my heart was going to stop. I almost threw up right there. I answered the call. The first thing I heard on the other end of the line was a guy laughing in the background. There was wind on the phone. The person on the other end was outside and it was windy. “Who is this?” It was his voice. I knew that voice. It was my fucking brother. My brother! Who had been gone for my entire life! I covered my mouth with my shaking hands and just sat there. He kept asking me who it was. The guy in the background was trying to talk over him. He hung up on me. I called him back right away. He answered again. Me being a creepy ass, the first thing I said after decades of not seeing him and thinking he was dead, I blurted: “I got your number.” He asked me who I was and what I wanted. I said, “It’s me.” There was a really long pause. I thought the call had dropped. Then I heard him tell someone to turn the radio down and roll the window up. The sound of wind stopped… and then he asked me my name. I told him and he said that I was lying. I told him I got his number from the missing children’s network and detectives. I heard him gasp. He asked me what color shoelaces he wore to a picnic when we were kids, and I remember my mom getting mad at his orange laces with blue shoes. It was the last time we were together as a family. I could tell he was crying. The first thing he asked me was: “Where are you?” and I told him I lived a few hours away from home. Without hesitating, he told me, “I’m coming.” He went straight to the airport without any luggage, bought a plane ticket, and flew straight to me. We stayed on the phone with each other the whole time. When he was walking through the gate, I knew who he was right away. He is middle-aged; salt and pepper hair, muscular. He looks just like our dad, only better. I know if I told him that, that would make him mad. I literally pushed an old lady out of the way and I just hugged him. He’s about two inches taller than me. He was able to pick me up. He was crying, I was crying. I was having a breakdown. We went to a bar at the airport. He wouldn’t let me out of his sight. He kept holding onto my arm. He kept telling me how unreal it all was. He apologized to me. He kept crying, telling me he felt horrible. I told him to forget everything and tell me about his life. He’s married. His husband is a doctor—a pediatric oncologist. They live in the Pacific Northwest. They have two children—girls, 12 and 8. He works as a legal consultant and has his own firm. He has an amazing life. He told me that he thought I hated him and wanted nothing to do with him. We sat at the bar for hours. Literal hours. I think we sat for about six hours before I begged him to come home and meet my wife. We got home, and my wife was a mess. She hugged him and insisted he stay with us. At this point, his husband was going insane and kept calling him. He had no idea what was going on. He thought he had eloped or something. It was crazy for a couple of days until everything was explained and out in the open. My son and my brother were like two peas in a pod. Honestly, I never wanted children. My son was an amazing accident, but I’m not good with kids. I’m always afraid I’m going to break them. But my brother is a pro. Kids love him. He stayed with us for two weeks. And in two weeks, everything about my life changed. His husband and two daughters flew in to stay with us. My brother-in-law and my two nieces. My family. They were my family. They are my family. My brother wants my wife and I to move to be closer to him. My wife is on board. I work as a professor at a university and have already started to send out feelers to see if there are any open positions, and I’ve found one that is actually tenured and higher pay. I do not plan on forgiving my parents, but my brother still loves them. He went by their house and knocked on the door. My father shut the door in his face. My mother gave him a hug and told him to take care of himself. Then she shut him out. I can’t forgive them for that. I have no reason to stay close to them. I want to be with my family. I want to make up for all the lost time. It’s 2am right now and I’m drinking a tall glass of scotch and grading papers. My beautiful, wonderful, smart, amazing wife is asleep on the couch. She likes to watch me grade papers. My son is asleep in his room cuddled up with all the stuffed animals his uncle brought him. And I’m here, so happy, so fulfilled knowing that my family has grown and doubled in size so suddenly. My heart is happy. I am so happy right now, Reddit. I am so happy.   [UPDATE 3 - November 21, 2016] Title: My New Family and Moving Forward Hi everyone! A few months ago I posted a notice that I had met my brother that my parents had disowned and didn't tell me, letting me assume that he went missing. Here is that update: I met my brother that was "missing"! Now, here, I'm posting an update over six months later. Thank you all for everything so far. Everything in my life has changed in the last ten months. Honestly, I don’t even know what to say. I want to apologize for neglecting this account; I’ve been busy. I want to fill you all in on what’s been going on in my life. I owe everyone who has messaged and commented that much, at the very least. My wife, son and myself have moved. Not exactly to the same region of the country as my brother and his family, but much closer to him. I got a new job teaching at a new university months ago. While it’s not a tenured position, it gives me the option to do research! Which is my favorite thing to do. My brother-in-law’s family has had many interesting discussions with each other trying to describe what has happened between my brother and I. They’re a pretty open-minded and accepting family, so to hear what we have been through was absolutely shocking to them. My brother never told his husband the truth about his life; only that he “didn’t speak” to his family anymore. Nevertheless, they welcomed me and my family with open arms when we came to visit. It was like we had always been part of their family. I feel content knowing that they are my family. When my brother ran away with his first boyfriend, he was verging on 18. He has elaborated and told me that the relationship with the man was abusive and when he tried to leave and return home, our parents would not let him. So, he was forced to stay with an abusive man because he had nowhere else to go until he moved away to college. This deepened my anger for my parents, but my brother—still, to this day—has this ridiculous sense of hope and optimism. I love that about him, because I don’t have that. My brother and I are two very different people, but in a way that works well. We reflected on my teenage years and I filled him in on what happened with my life. My brother is very quiet and observant; he always watches before he intervenes, he’s soft-spoken and gently objects when someone says something he disagrees with. He’s patient, kind and optimistic (as I’ve said). He has a very loving heart, so I think that’s why he has an unrelenting faith in our parents. Me, on the other hand, I’m abrasive, impatient and quick to jump to conclusions. My wife wanted me to add (about me): “doesn’t separate laundry, refuses to mop the floors and can’t properly change the oil.” Despite being very different, we have this uncanny ability to be thinking the same thing. Even though we have been separated for several years, we can still give each other a “look” and know exactly what the other is plotting. My brother has been able to create a spectacular life for himself—all on his own. One thing I struggle with is knowing that he went through more than half of his life by himself, putting himself through college and law school all alone. The more he filled me in about the years away from our parents, the more angry I became. I severed communication with my parents months ago, after the last time I posted on here, and it has done wonders for my own mental health. But then the election happened a few weeks ago. In all honesty, I don’t even have the words to summarize what this presidential election was. I don’t want to make this political, but this whole thing—by its nature—is political and serves a great purpose. I’ve read messages on here of people saying that they, too, have been disowned by family for being gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or other-identifying. I have heard so many stories from Redditors across the country, telling me that they are scared, alone and afraid every single day of their lives—all because of who they fundamentally are. The day after the election, my brother and his husband were devastated. My wife, who is a black woman, was devastated. It’s not just Donald Trump himself; it’s his supporters, followers and the ideology that took hold with so many people. Where I come from, Donald Trump’s hateful rhetoric on registering Muslims and disenfranchising LGBTQ+ and minoritized peoples was heralded as something genius and revolutionary, but to me it is a personal attack on my family. I have been in shock and disgusted for days. I had to explain to my son what it all means, and why the world is not always a good place. I had to have the same conversation with him when his grandparents did not like him because of his dark skin. The day after the election, however, I got a call from my mother. I didn’t answer it, because I was in class, but she left a voicemail and said she would like to talk at my earliest convenience. I thought on it, still enraged, but decided to call her back—more out of curiosity than a desire to speak with her. When we began our conversation, she asked how I was doing. My answers were short, one-worded. She jumped right in, and I could tell she was uncomfortable. She apologized. But she apologized only to me. I wasn’t fazed by this: I told my mother that she should talk to my brother, and unless she did that then she need not call me anymore. I told my brother that our mother had called and apologized, and the look on his face was pure happiness. I can’t even begin to describe it to you all; it was as if all of his dreams had come true. My brother called our mother, and she—to my surprise—picked up. They had a short conversation, and my brother’s happy glow had dimmed somewhat when he got off the phone. He told me that she said that, given the election results, she had only wanted to speak to me (I guess, alluding to the fact that I’m a white, straight male—the “normal” son) in an effort to “repair the family” and that we all (me, my mom and dad—not my brother) “need each other now.” She also went on to say she does not approve of what my brother does, but she had “read up on his lifestyle” and recommended conversion therapy. My brother ended the call with a very gentle, “I’m sorry, mom, but I can’t do that. I love you. Goodnight.” I think my brother has been broken these last few weeks, and the hope and optimism that naturally carries him through life has been eradicated. He’s buried himself in work and ignores any discussion around our family. My wife is a counselor, and she normally avoids counselling people she doesn’t work with, but she’s told me that the only thing I can do for my brother at this point is to be there for him, and to never let him be alone again. Like I said before, though, I have a tendency to lash out and be aggressive. Yesterday, while stewing on my own rage about my parents, I called my mother and when she answered, I just began screaming into the phone. I unleashed a lot of things and I remember crying while I did so, because I was so enraged. I told her how much she hurt my brother—her son—and how she put his life in danger, all for her ideology. I told her how unfair and upsetting it is that her and my dad would do this to their children, to my brother, how it’s criminal and how they should be punished. When I finished screaming, I was going to hang up (because she miraculously hadn’t during my ten minute tirade), but she cut in with a quiet: “He sounds grown.” My mother acknowledged my brother’s existence with that short sentence, then she went on with: “I’m so sorry. Let me speak to him, okay?” But I didn’t—I hung up, then I blocked her number. I don’t know what she wanted to say, but I’m afraid it is something that could damage my brother further. We are currently staying with him for the Thanksgiving holiday. My view right now is this: my wife and my brother-in-law are sitting on the living room floor trying to assemble an Ikea shelf, my son is beside me watching cartoons and keeps telling his mother and uncle to “shhh!”, and my brother is in the kitchen washing dishes. This is a life that people want to see destroyed, taken away and “converted.” This is a life I am so grateful to have and it is filled with people that this world is lucky to have on its surface. I haven’t told my brother that our mom tried to call, and I don’t want to. I don’t think there’s a point. I just want to spend as much time and energy as I can trying to love my brother, my family, my small little slice of bliss. This is my Heaven; this is a life I will proudly defend against hate and intolerance and bigotry. I am so lucky to have this life, these people and this happiness and I will never stop fighting for it.   Edited to add link to user. I am not the original poster. This is a repost sub. submitted by /u/sst0ssaway to r/BestofRedditorUpdates [link] [comments]

Background: I tried to leave to Canada for the same reasons everyone tries to leave India, for a better life. I had a small startup company in India which was running well enough for a startup which shutdown when the pandemic hit and one of my partners committed suicide. It, along with a lot of other obvious factors made me want to leave India. I got into a college in Canada with a total fee of 22L for a diploma course and left at the end of October. One thing no one told me about is the housing crisis here and the insane living expenses. These immigration agencies paint a rosy picture of this life in Canada full of opportunities and wonders where I get to work part-time and pay off my living expenses and student loans while living the best life possible. That can't be further from the truth. My father is a small railway clerk. He gets decent money enough to get me a student loan but that is it. We do not know anyone here in Canada, we have no friends or family here. The only people I know now is the people I met along the way. The college wasn't offering any accommodations and whatever it had was full. I tried looking for rooms and everyone's response here was basically that they'll talk when I'm in Canada. So I booked an Airbnb in Canada for 3 days, hoping to find a room during my stay there and left with a total of 400CAD (24,000rupees) in my hdfc forex card. Indians in Canada: It soon became clear the kind of people who try to come here mostly consist of wealthy Indians who can more than afford a good lifestyle here. Their parents are wealthy enough to fund them well enough and they also most likely have a family member living here. The second kind are the Indians who have some family member here and can live with them for a while until they can figure things out. People like me who have nothing and no one here are insanely rare and stupid to do something like this without proper financial backing. Indians here are either the most kindest people you will find or they try to scam you. This one Punjabi guy sold me a 1$ travel adapter for 11$ seeing that I badly needed one while this other Punjabi guy gave me an uber ride of 30$ for free seeing how I was new to the city, both on the first day. Only Indians will scam you and only Indians will be as kind to you as one can be. Seems like there's no in-between. Worst day of my life: By the third day in Canada, when my Airbnb stay had ended, I had talked to this old lady about renting a room in her place for 1200$ initial deposit and this other guy for renting this other place for the same price. The plan was to go to the bank account and redeem my GIC money of 10,000$, roughly 6Lakh rupees. (which is the initial deposit I have to provide to Canada before I can get the visa), pay the rent and start living there. Things already seemed shaky but I had gone to a nearby bank the day before and they said I needed to have an appointment for that. This day, I had an appointment and I left as early as I can in the day with my total 70kgs of luggage (everything I got from India) to travel 90kms in bus to go to the bank, redeem the money and then take the room. If things go wrong, at least I'd have the money to fall back onto. My father had also sent me 1lakh just incase something goes wrong. The bus did not stop where it was supposed to. The bus driver drove way past the bus stop when I was clearly asking him to stop and stopped somewhere far away in the next bus stop. It was a minor setback perhaps so I tried to take a bus back again to that stop, waited another half an hour before the bus came and he did the same thing again. He drove back again all over and stopped 2 stops over. Little did I know I had to pull a thin lever tied to either side and unless I do that, he will not stop no matter how much I ask him to. I was very far in another bus stop again. By then, I had dragged my luggage across at least 1km, changed 5 busses and hadn't eaten the whole day. The only ray of hope was to reach the bank somehow and claim the money. I finally took another bus and somehow reached the bank. The lady, who was also indian, greeted me and then told me she cannot do the procedure to claim my money since it was 3:30 and the bank closes at 4pm. I hadn't gotten the money that my father sent me more than 2 days ago. I had a total of 100$ in my forex card. Apparently the bus service stops early since it was a Saturday, Banks are closed on Sundays, I was way outside the main city and so there aren't many taxi services, the cheapest airbnb costed me 70$ per night. If I book an Airbnb, I wouldn't have money for the uber ride. Even if I did take a bus there, how would I be able to afford the stay for Sunday ? ... For the first time in my life I couldn't think anymore. I sat at the corner of the bank staring at my dying phone battery wondering what I was doing all the way here on the other side of the planet having left behind everyone who loves me and cares for me. I had everything back home. All my friends and family who could never imagine and can never know that I who would always take them around in my car would be so close to being homeless. I couldn't let them know either because I didn't want them to worry about me. The bank lady approached me at closing time and asked me if everything is okay. Idk what happened but I couldn't help tearing up. I didn't look at her but I told her I don't know. She asked me if there's someone I can call who can pick me up and I said no. She then asked me if there is somewhere she can drop me and I said no. She asked me to try to find someone I can call. I scurried through my phone contacts to see if there is someone I can call and I found this number of this lady I met the previous day at a government office who told me to call her if I ever got into trouble. I called her up and she gave me another number. I called him up and he didn't answer but he gave me an address. And since I had some address and nothing more to lose, I told the bank lady that I have an address and she told me she will drop me there. I had no clue where I was going since the text message only contained a name and an address. She drove me and left me on the sidewalk. I went up to the door and knocked. This Indian guy opens the door and asks me what I want. I tell him the name and then he immediately asks me to come in, goes out and carries my luggage inside. There were 5 guys sitting and watching the TV. I start explaining my situation and they ask me to sit down and relax first. This other guy was making dosas and he got me a couple in a plate. Once I had eaten, I told them what had happened and they told me not to worry since I found them and told me how they can crash in their sofa as long as I want to. They were insanely chill. We sat down and watched a movie and right that evening, they took me around in their car and found a room for me that I can rent. And then they sat me down and explained me everything I needed to know. I stayed there for another 2 days until I claimed my money and moved to the new place. I couldn't be more thankful and its amazing how its always Indians who are truly there for me even though I have never met them ever before. Later I found out that my parents sensed that something was horribly wrong even though I had told them nothing and they hadn't been able to sleep for days until I showed them the room I was going to stay in, especially my father who knew my financial situation and got sick mentally torturing himself for not being able to provide me a better financial support. ​ Rent situation: The rent situation is horrible since Canada has the most inflated and expensive housing market on the planet. I am currently paying 500$ (30,000rupees all inclusive) a month for living in a hall in the basement of a house. There are 2 other guys living with me who has their own separate bedrooms since they pay more and the 3 of us have a common bathroom and a common bedroom. All of this in the basement of a house. It may sound pricey but that is kind of the going rate after they got inflated due to the pandemic. I might find a better deal elsewhere but they all get sold out faster than MI flash sale when those were big. But at least I get my little privacy when the other guys don't come this side to use the kitchen that is directly Infront of my hall. Most Indian students here live in a "sharing basis" where they share a bedroom between 2 people that will cost each of them anywhere from 380$ - 500$ (22,000 - 30,000 rupees) a month. And these rooms are most likely in basements along with other such rooms. So in a basement there are often 2-6 students. I heard of this one rent offer where at the Ground floor there were 8 guys living, on the 1st floor there was 10 guys living and at the basement of a house there were 8 GIRLS living. Sounds crazy but it has become a normal for Indians here. 8 guys/girls in one floor means 4 bedrooms in one floor sharing a common kitchen, hall and a bathroom. It costs 350$ (20,500 rupees) for each person. It got filled in less than a day. ​ Transport: A 10km travel will take 9 minutes in a car, 30 minutes in a bicycle and 2 hours in a bus. It is hard to live without a car here. The country is designed for cars. And the busses, you pay about 4$(240rupees) depending on where you are and that will give you a pass that you can use to roam for about 2 hours or less wherever the bus company operates. Yes that's right, there is no government run transport here. This country is a late stage capitalist utopia. If you want to buy a car, you will get an amazing sedan for cheap. But the monthly insurance can be anywhere from 180$ - 300$ (10,500 - 17500 rupees) a month. The maintenance costs are expensive. Every winter you will have to swap regular tires for winter tires which are expensive. Food: An egg costs 25 rupees each, cilantro costs 60rupees, tomato costs 70 rupees each and milk costs 105 rupees per liter. Food is very expensive. And so is junk food. This may look manageable but they really add up when you want a proper diet. Mobile Internet: One thing Indians take for granted is their mobile internet / jio. Mobile plans in Canada cost 50$ (3000rupees) per month for 8GB of data which is standard here and mobile plans aren't universal, they change for each individual costumer. If you can bargain good and find good places (with no Indians scamming you like the Indian who scammed me with my plan), you may find 40$(2400rupees) for 12GB per month which sounds bs compared to the 2GB per day plan you get in jio for 600 rupees per month in india. ​ This will all be perfectly manageable since we will be working part-time don't we ? Part-time Job situation: Well in theory, yes. You can manage all expenses if you work part-time. But it is complicated. Students get a 20 hour per week work permit. And they all pay minimum wage which is 14.35$/hour (829 rupees/hour) which seems to be the only thing students who come here are looking at. Indian university degree or experience will not be respected in Canada. They don't care who you were in India. They only offer minimum wage, take it or leave it. But even that for 20 hours a week should give around 1000$ (60,000rs) per month minus the travel expenses right ? Well that is if you can find a job that will give you full 20 hours. I got a job that is only paying me 12 hours a week which adds only up to 600$ (36,000rs) a month of which 500$ is going for rent. The jobs that give full 20 hours often involve manual labor like lifting weights of up to 20kgs frequently. It is basically the lowest job there can be in this country. They may even pay a little more that minimum wage but they are often in far off locations that consume money in transport. Indians can totally do that but that still is not enough since the food+rent will take up all the money. And unexpected expenses keep pouring in unannounced. So too many Indians work for "cash jobs" after the finish their main job which is basically illegal work that is paid in cash so the government cannot track it, which is often dangerous as you can guess and a some even get scammed. But this has become the normal. Main job + Cash job is what one needs to survive and manage expenses and have some savings too. So basically whatever time the college takes + 20 hours of cash job + 20 hours of main job and the rest of the time you're too tired to do anything else. ​ Canadians: Canadians are extremely polite. They are very very nice people in general but they also seem paranoid of other people. Indians don't really mix with the Canadians very easily. They stay separate and in their own circles and I understand why. Depression: Students here can't and won't tell the struggles they face here to their parents or even their friends back home. The pictures of them posing in these pristine streets and behind expensive cars does not show a true picture of what's happening here to them. Living in basements and working factory or minimum wage jobs after living a good life in India and away from loved ones is not going to be good for anyone's mental health. Indian students "get used to" whatever happens here. ​ And then what after getting a PR ? Work insanely hard, hustle, finish college, get a job after college, go head over heels to get a PR and then what ? I live very far away from the city and in this tiny town where I had a lunch with a kind Canadian family of 5 who was paying a rent of 2400$ (1.4Lakh) per month for a small basic decent house. And they tell me how they are struggling to make ends meet. And the houses here start at 5 crore rupees all the way out here in this tiny town and you can guess the city prices. Unless one gets a VERY GOOD job here or has rich parents, buying a house here seems impossible. Apartments don't really cost that much less. In contrast, the 200sq.yard duplex house I lived in the city back home, had a rent of 10,000 rupees (170$) per month. The rent I'm paying here will get me a luxury apartment in the center of the city back home. I personally cannot imagine living in a country where I will need both mine and my spouse's income combined just to live a decent life and still always be at the risk of going homeless any day. The land prices at the outskirts of my city was costing 24lakhs for 200sq.yards right before I left. I cannot imagine life where in a city where basic commodities can be a struggle. In India the wages may be low. But the if half your income is goes for accommodation, you'd be able to buy the house instead if renting it. My father pays 1/6th of his income for accommodation. And an average salary of 30,000rs per month like mine paying 8000rs for a full house rent, still left about half my salary for savings which could do a lot in Indian economy. ​ Conclusion: The cars may not be as cheap, the roads may not be as pristine (although that's slowly changing), the house may not be made of wood, the trees may not come in red color, the street selfies may not help parents brag and the roadside people may not be as polite. But I will have my self respect and mental health. Being in India is not easy but it's worse out here unless you're loaded, you have an amazing job or your dad's a politician or something. I think about my family a lot and friends that I left behind to pursue what exactly? The pandemic pushed me and a lot of others to despair and we thought coming here would solve something. Canada saw a record intake of Indians this year and I imagine lots of them were pushed to despair by the pandemic like I was. India is an amazing country despite all its negative political bs. My asthma inhaler costs 140 rupees in India, 1800 rupees in Canada and 17000 rupees in US apparently. India heavily subsidizes medicines that I have always taken for granted like most other Indians. Food is very cheap and road side food is ultra cheap while being delicious. People may not be as polite but they are real. Internet is surprisingly the cheapest on the planet. Literally everything is cheap and not just that, one gets to live a dignified life with loved ones. ​ Post Note: This post does not apply to anyone who is rich or has a good job. Most Indians aren't very rich. Middle class Indians often seem to look at the rich Indians here and come here searching for that life. A lot of times, it's the taxes paid by the hard earning Indian public that got them that Lamborghini. ​ Edit 1: Of course I wasn't prepared for this. Anyone with two braincells can see that. I don't want to be reminded of how unprepared I was. And I came to Canada with only 400$ because that's all my father could afford to give me at that time. We are poor. It was either go now or lose the 10lakh fee I paid. It's really hard to be prepared when poor. The nuances and the intricate details are hard to research online. Like how was I supposed to know I have to pull that thin rope placed in the corner of the bus off of google ? How does one search for these things ? I never said I'm smart, I said I was desperate. Desperation makes people make stupid decisions. When life seems to be falling apart rapidly, the first instinct is to try to fix it anyhow. Mistakes have been made. I am well aware of the costs way before coming here. I'm trying to inform others. Also it's one thing to know the costs beforehand and another to actually buy groceries at that cost. submitted by /u/fredrichniche to r/india [link] [comments]

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I’ve never shared this story before but for some reason it just came to mind today and I thought other women would find it interesting. In Nov 2016 I took a group tour to North Korea. After collecting your baggage at Pyongyang Airport, you are directed to a series of cubicles where an agent rifles through your luggage. The male agent first found my camera bag containing, among other things, an Instax Mini camera with an extra insert of film. He held up the foil case of film and gestured at me with a quizzical look on his face. I made a move like I was taking a picture with a camera then pointed to the Instax Mini. He seemed to understand so he put it all back together and continued searching. He found my toiletries bag and poked around my toothpaste, floss, moisturizer, contact wash until he found my little bag filled with tampons. He pulled it out, opened it to grab one tampon and carefully inspected it before gesturing towards me again with another quizzical look. I tried to explain as discreetly as I could by putting my hand on my lower stomach then waving it down while saying “women’s troubles.” He absolutely was not getting it, so he said something in Korean to the supervising agent and held his hand up to me to indicate that I should wait there. A short time later, he reappeared with a smartly dressed woman and I thought “okay, great. She’ll recognize tampons and handle this.” The woman introduced herself as the translator and took the tampons in her hand — but then very politely asked me to please explain what they were. At this point I was thoroughly baffled; I hadn’t considered that women in North Korea might not have access to tampons, indeed that they might not even know what they are. I just stood there for a bit before saying again, simply, that they were for “women’s troubles.” She instantly went beet red and became very flustered. She turned to the male agent and whispered something in Korean, then he went beet red and bowed his head. He said something to me in Korean, still with his eyes pointed at the ground, then quickly shuffled away. Throughout this, the woman was apologizing repeatedly then translated the male agent’s comment as him “expressing his sincere hope that he had not offended me.” Apparently they thought I was just as embarrassed as they clearly were, but I just kept waving my hands and smiling and saying it was fine. They had only finished inspecting the first of my two suitcases at that point, but I guess they decided Tampon Girl couldn’t possibly be a threat because they let me continue on my way without ever looking at my second bag. submitted by /u/Shark-Farts to r/TwoXChromosomes [link] [comments]

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