Cheap muck boots womens

I have as a plan b to retire to southeast Asia or Bali or somewhere like that that is warm and cheap and where it's easy to get female attention.
I am not talking about this from a sleazy point of going along there and dating women 20 or 30 years younger I'm talking about going over there and having a relaxed life and finding someone who is genuine about companionship. Maybe she would already have a adult kids.
Yes they will be financially motivated but that's ok. It doesn't cost much to keep them happy if they are a genuine person not a player prostitute type. I already know some woman overseas who I have met who are professional and doing ok by their standards.
And there is not a financial risk there because I would not be getting married and getting them the visa and things like that t will just be finding a nice woman who wants to have a committed relationship.
The last time I was in Bali I enjoyed going to lunch with women it didn't cost much they were intelligent women with good jobs that they were happy to hang out and spend time in a relaxed way. which is basically what I'm missing out on here. I did not try to have sex with them or anything like that I'm talking about real woman who are living their lives and not playing with foreigners. They are a bit harder to meet you have to spend a bit of time there. But the opportunity is there because essentially you are rich. Just have to take some time to integrate into a normal life in a place outside of the party towns.
So I know it's a definite possibility I've just got to get through 20 years of saving money and staying connected to supportive groups for companionship.
Plan A is to meet a facially unattractive woman here who is going through the same thing. That's my plan a that I'm serious about but at least I have a full pack position and that helps give me some hope because statistically it's very difficult to find a genuinely facially unattractive woman who is not overweight. I keep fit.

Hey y'all, I'm in a wedding in a few weeks and the groom picked suits with tapered legs and my dress shoes are cowboy boots. The tops of the boots show really badly through the pants. Does anyone have any ideas to cinch them up for an evening? What have others done in this situation - rubber bands, tied shoelaces, masking tape?
I'm taking the suit in for some other alterations and will ask if they can just let out the legs a bit but want some ideas just in case. My last resort will be to just get some cheap dress shoes so I can look good for my buddy.
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Thanks!

I got my SER6 Pro. It came in the 32gb/500gb configuration with the Ryzen 7 7735HS CPU and onboard Radeon 600 series GPU.
I need a lot of space, and they only technically support up to 2TB drives (onboard NVMe or 2.5" SATA slot). I saw a few videos where people take out the fan plate which is where the 2.5" SATA mounts, which helps with airflow. So with that, my better option was to get a beefier NVMe SSD.
I went with the HP FX900 Pro 4TB, which is on sale for $250/usd.
Knowing the process on BeeLink, my setup process went like so:

1. put the 4TB into a NVMe-USB3 enclosure
   
2. boot the system with Clonezilla, which lets me clone the current drive to the 4TB
   
3. power back down, and physically swap the 4tb in / 500gb out.
   
4. Booted it up, and the 4tb seemed to work great, until Windows Updates started running. They all took forever, and many times would fail. Also, Windows would not show up as activated. With no rhyme or reason why, I tried and tried to get it to work, even stopping, and re-cloning from the original C: drive again. Eventually got to a Blue Screen (Windows Error: 0x0000000E, if you speak Windows Error Message language).
   

So, after mucking around with it, literally for hours, I decided I would try a fresh build from Media Creation Tool. I created a bootable USB on my other system with fresh W11 Media, and ran through the installation.
It went perfectly. Unlike my SEI12 build, this time Windows did find the activation code in the motherboard this time. Everything was detected and installed. I know that the bluetooth and NIC drivers on Intel's site are newer, so I grabbed those, and also the latest AMD chipset driver directly from AMD.
Everything is working like a champ.
A couple of notes:
a) On the 4TB SSD, there is a thermal pad that's too thick to let the case close. I peeled that off and replaced it with something similar, but still a thermal pad. With the second HDD not being installed, there's room for airflow now.
b) Still, if the machine goes to sleep, I have to disconnect and reconnect the HDMI cable since I'm using it on a KVM switcher. I don't attribute that to the build, though. Just more of a "if this happens to you, it's happening to me too" sort of note.
c) After the reinstall, at idle, no fans in overdrive or anything, it's running around 55-58C. It's a little warm for my taste, but I'll keep an eye on this under load and see if it's something that needs further attention.
TL/DR: the reinstall to a bigger drive was a ton less complicated than I thought it would be. Had I had data on it to keep, I would have chosen a different strategy.

Coming up from DC early Saturday to meet someone to drive back down. Meeting them early afternoon as they're coming down from Mt Kisco. Thinking of bringing my commuter bike (as opposed to kitting up with my road bike) to boot around for a few hours to explore the city.
I proposed meeting them at the 181st St subway station, as it's just off the I-95 to pick me up and proceed on the drive back to DC.
I'll be arriving by train at Penn Station 9 am on Sat morning. I mapped out the following based on some suggestions here on reddit:
google.com/maps/diPennsylvania+Station,+New+York,+NY+10119/Coney+Island,+Brooklyn,+NY/Prospect+Park,+Brooklyn,+NY/800+West+181st+Street,+New+York,+NY/@40.8461649,-74.0149461,11.84z/data=!4m31!4m30!1m10!1m1!1s0x89c259ae15b2adcb:0x7955420634fd7eba!2m2!1d-73.993519!2d40.750568!3m4!1m2!1d-74.034168!2d40.6407286!3s0x89c24fffa8718e65:0x1ccf4a06fbb6f594!1m5!1m1!1s0x89c24448979d75cb:0x54745adc3c8f1179!2m2!1d-73.9707016!2d40.5755438!1m5!1m1!1s0x89c25b1087680443:0x178bf7c600df7a98!2m2!1d-73.9689558!2d40.6602037!1m5!1m1!1s0x89c2f6a0e404f6c9:0x621fe7d6fea40e64!2m2!1d-73.9385593!2d40.8508458!3e1!5m1!1e3?entry=ttu
I've visited NYC a few times and enjoy finding good (and cheap hole in the wall!) eats and exploring interesting neighborhoods... No need to do any typical touristy things.
Any other sights/routes that might be worth checking out?

Hey all! I'm a smart, energetic, naturally curious, and very adventurous guy, and I'm looking for a woman to explore the world of kink with!
I have a very overactive imagination and am very open minded and adventurous in the bedroom, and as a result I have a TONNE of kinks and ideas I want to explore! I enjoy being dominant but I'm definitely a switch and have been curious about being dominated by a woman too for a long time. I've also generally had better experiences with older women and love age gaps so if you're a bit older then feel free to reach out! Here's a miscellaneous list of things I either enjoy doing or want to try:
Rough sex, bondage, orgasm control, edging, tease and denial, outfit play, CFNM, group sex, exhibitionism, voyeurism, public sex, facesitting, toy play, anal play, impact play...
Looks wise I'm tall, 6" 4', slim, fairly athletic, I run in my spare time so I have nice legs. I'm South Asian, with brown skin, brown eyes, and luscious long black hair. Happy to swap pics if things go well. I'm a big metalhead and look the part too - if you like guys with leather jackets, long hair, band shirts, and boots, then I'm your man!
In general I'm a very sociable and outgoing person - I love meeting new people, chatting and getting to know people, and I love conversation! Love to talk about how your day went, your hopes and dreams, your favourite band, or whether there's an afterlife (well, is there?)
Personality wise I'm very open minded, laid back, chilled out, and easy going. Love trying new experiences and learning about just about anything! I'm a scientist in my day job and general nerd, and in my spare time I'm mad about music, love concerts, collecting records, and playing the bass guitar. I also love cooking, keen football fan (DM me to find out which team I support!) and love watching F1 as well. Keen on long walks by the river and I enjoy running in my spare time as well.
Fully jabbed and DDF so no worries there!
I'm looking for my Midnight Queen - message me if you'd like to chat :D

After watching top gun (1986) I realised that maverick wears these badass looking cowboy boots.
I know you can buy replicas online but I’m not about to drop $1000 on the replicas, nor pay 1/10th of the price for the crappy cheap rip-offs!
I ask for help to find some that look similar to these, similar from a distance or close up, any help would be very kindly appreciated!
I’m a 7d (in Ariat if that helps)
Redditor’s do your thing, thanks again guys and gals :))))

Let me start by saying that I think Lydia and Nicole are nasty, ungrateful gold diggers and I have thought this since OG 90 Day Fiancé pre “The Family Chantel.” I don’t agree with Nicole’s interrogation or Lydia’s entitlement to gifts. That was so rude for her to demand one and took away the kind gesture of gift giving in my opinion.
The only thing that I can emphasize with, however, is her frustration with how Scott spoiled the ex but treats his peer like an afterthought. I dunno, it just seemed pretty low effort to me. Lydia is not entitled to gifts AT ALL, but I get the vibe that Scott treats women his age like they should be grateful for his presence. I understand that you do different things for different people, but this other woman ghosted him out of the blue. So she was also a user and not treating him like a king. No shame in that, she was trading looks and youth for money, but Scott accepted this treatment and took her back with open arms after saying that “I don’t buy women.” I’m sorry, but I would be offended too. Kinda like how Jasmine was upset when she found out that Gino was spoiling other women but being cheap with her. I wouldn’t demand gifts like Lydia, but I would wonder why I’m getting the bare minimum while the other chick got red carpet treatment.
Does anyone else feel this way? To reiterate, Lydia (along with Angela) is my least favorite woman in the series. I just think that older women get the short end of the stick with these guys.
Source: I used to be wined and dined by older men who looked down on their peers. It was a MASSIVE turnoff for me.
EDIT: Lydia and Angela are my least favorite if we’re talking about the 90 Day universe.

By Meged V.V., 1997
The great science of the future - the science of society harmonisation was created by a woman!
The name of this outstanding woman is Aushra Augustinavichiute. She has turned 70 this year and lives in Vilnius. Despite the fact that it is not customary for us to give people their due while they are still alive, Aushra was a pleasant exception to this sad rule. Glory came to her in the 80s after the publication of her first works, and has not left her. Her name has firmly entered the history of mankind, since this woman opened a new era in the development of human sciences, raised psychology, sociology, pedagogy, and a number of other sciences about man and society to a higher level.
A. Augustinavichiute laid the foundations of socionics - the science of the mechanisms of the psyche, which made it possible to determine the abilities of people with different types of personality, their strengths and weaknesses, characteristics of character and behaviour, social roles, as well as to model and predict the nature of relationships between people, determine the degree of their compatibility.
All this became possible thanks to the unique discovery of Aushra - a model of information exchange between a person and the environment. For the first time in the history of mankind, a theory was created that made it possible to reduce all sciences about man to a single coherent system of laws, which means opening up new opportunities for predicting the development of every child, every young couple, and... even every state!
A. Augustinavichiute visited Kyiv in September of this year in connection with the invitation of the International Institute of Socionics, which held its 19th conference. Here she was surrounded by the attention and love of her students and followers from different cities of the CIS. Among them is myself, who joined the ranks of socionics in 1988, a year after the creation of the first Socionics Club in Kiev - a public organisation created by enthusiastic volunteers who studied socionics and continue its further development.
The first impetus to the development of socionics was given by its creator Aushra in 1985. She read a course of lectures in Kyiv and immediately acquired her loyal followers here. Thus, Kyiv became the centre of the further development of socionics - this powerful passionary movement, which had no historical analogues in the development of other sciences, in which people of all professions take part to this day.
In 1991, the International Institute of Socionics was established in Kyiv. IIS, headed by A.V. Bukalov. He began to publish regularly the international socionics journal "Socionics, Mentology, and Psychology of Personality", in which an avalanche of the most interesting articles on socionics still does not stop, and to hold international conferences.
During the break, I (V.M. (t/n: Valentina Meged)) asked Aushra Augustinavichiute and Aleksandr Valentinovich Bukalov a few questions:
V.M. Aushra, please tell me why among the most active socionists there are still fewer women than men? Is this due to the inherent mediocrity attributed to them by misogynists, or elements of discrimination on the part of men who are at the head of this movement and suppress women's intellectual initiative?
A.A. I think that women themselves are to blame for this, because so far they have not freed themselves from the stupid role that their nature has imposed on them: to be, first of all, a wife and mother, despite their abilities being equal to those of men.
V.M. What is the fault of women then, since nature created them that way?
A.A. The fact that they are lazy and do not want to fight for their right to be free to choose: to give birth or not to give birth to children, to get married or not.
V.M. But why don't women assert their independence in making important life decisions?
A.A. Women are too afraid to cause misunderstanding and condemnation in their loved ones and those around them, therefore they tend to follow the template - like everyone else, so as not to stand out and defy conventions, although not all of them have a developed maternal instinct and not everyone can find their happiness in giving birth and raising children and taking care of their husband instead of running the state or driving scientific and cultural progress. Therefore, women will be able to raise their authority in society simply by reducing the birth rate.
V.M. What will happen to humanity if women refuse this nature-given role?
A.A. The problem lies in the fact that women give birth more than there is a natural need for it. If not all women give birth, there will be less humanity, but it will be of better quality, and it will be able to better think over and organise a fair and harmonious existence. Moreover, in this case, more smart talented women will come to power, and the female mind is initially, by nature itself, arranged in such a way as to think about harmony, peace, and creation more than about the victory of one's own ambitions at any cost.
V.M. It is hard to disagree with you, because a vivid example of such a female mind is yourself, a woman who created a science for harmonising society. Do you think socionics will benefit from the fact that it will continue to be developed mainly by men?
A.A. Of course not. What I said about society as a whole applies to socionics as well. It is a woman who can adapt socionics for real practical service to people, despite the fact that men also make a significant contribution to the development of the theory.
V.M. Does this mean that women need to fight more actively for equality and independence?
A.A. Many women simply do not listen to their own voice of reason and don't follow their true calling, as most men do. They need to fight not with men for equality, but with themselves in order to allow themselves this equality.
V.M. What is needed in order to activate women to fight the stereotypes of society and their ideas about women's role?
A.A. I think that the blame lies with the lack of demand for women's thinking in society. A woman is forgiven for any stupidity. It is not right. Women should be shamed for their stupidity and passivity. No need to spare their pride, otherwise they will not want to change. When it becomes humiliating to be a stupid and undeveloped woman, then women will begin to really fight for the state to provide them with opportunities for a creative and socially active life.
V.M. Do you think that women should fight for equality not with men, but with state power?
A.A. Well, of course! Individual men alone do not decide anything. Now there are enough men who respect and appreciate smart and talented women, but this does not change anything for all women in general.
V.M. And what can change the fate of all our women who are overburdened with family and housekeeping? After all, many of them really want to develop, but for this they have neither the time nor the conditions?
A.A. Only the concern of the state to unburden women can change their fate, just as it is done in developed countries. It is necessary to create a developed network of cheap washing machines, provide stores with ready-made, tasty, and healthy foodstuffs, improve the quality of service for children in nurseries, kindergartens, and schools, and so on. But for this, women themselves must come to power and take care of the effective solution of such issues.
V.M. Is it possible to think about improving the quality of service during such a severe economic crisis?
A.A. It is possible, and it is necessary. So far, of course, only women who are well-off can afford such a service, but if the social morality, formed by everyone else, forces them to develop and be socially active, that is, to be smart and active, and not stupid dependants, they will be able to free themselves and come to governance of the country on an equal footing with poor, but free from family ties, women. And then there will be someone to lead the country out of the crisis into which it was brought by men's ambitions.
V.M. It seems that you do not have a very high opinion of men. Is that so?
A.A. I really appreciate and respect smart and, especially, wise men. But they, like women, are very few. This is the cause of all unhappiness. People need to develop their intellect, but it is easier for men to do this, since they are not burdened with the childbearing function and conventions that place the main burden of housekeeping on women. Therefore, women need to fight for equal opportunities for general development and social activities. But, not all women need to do this, but only those who have the intellectual abilities for it.
V.M. Why do you think that men brought the country to a crisis?
A.A. Because there should be an equal proportion of men and women in the government for constructive decisions. Men are more destructive in nature, as they represent the warlike forces of Yang nature. There must be a balance of Yin and Yang forces, then it will be a wise government. Of course, provided that the people nominated for public office will be tested with intelligence tests.
In addition, it is important what sociotype will occupy a particular public post. If it is possible to select candidates according to socionic criteria, only then will there be effective governance of the country, a way out of the crisis, and the development of a truly democratic and harmonious society, in which at the first place there will be not a struggle of ideas and ideologies, but real concern for people.
V.M. What sociotype can lead the country out of the crisis now?
A.A. According to the theory of socionics, a group of sociotypes - Reformers (t/n: Gamma) - is now fulfilling its social mission in society. It transfers the social evolutionary order to the group of Perfecters (t/n: Delta), in particular to the sociotype which is called the Administrator (t/n: LSE). It is an honest, strong-willed, and fair person, with clear logical thinking and administrative and economic abilities. But right now there are many sociotypes of the Implementers group (t/n: Beta) in the government. Therefore, the sociotype of this group which is called the Leader (t/n: SLE) is more likely to come to power. It is a courageous and flexible person, with good willpower and organisational qualities. This sociotype can handle the crisis, but if it doesn't resign in time, it will begin to rebuild the totalitarian system. Worst of all if theorists come to power, or populists like Zhirinovsky, who are called in socionics - Mentors (t/n: EIE). Their ideology is at the first place for them - a nationalist plan or some other, but business logic (t/n: Te) is too poorly developed, and without it it will be simply impossible to get out of the crisis.
V.M. How would you, if you had the opportunity, organise the further activities of socionics in Kyiv?
A.A. First of all, I would gather the most talented socionists at the Scientific-Research Institute of Socionics, and then I would be confident in the further successful development of socionics and the solution of all issues related to it. People have been working on enthusiasm alone for too long, and they are also forced to fend off the attacks of amateurs and mediocrity, who are, unfortunately, also numerous in socionics. Real specialists in socionics need to be financially provided for and socially protected, thereby creating conditions for their further fruitful work.
V.M. Thank you, Aushra, for the interesting information and for the benefit to humanity that your discovery has brought and will bring even more in the future, rightfully worthy of the Nobel Prize. But, as they say, "there are no prophets in their own country", especially while the prophets are alive. Well, at least people who do not have power and money have understood and appreciated your work and will successfully continue such a necessary work of yours.

• Now, Bukalov Aleksandr Valentinovich, let me ask you, as the director of the International Institute of Socionics, a few questions about socionics.

V.M. Why does socionics, which in practice turned out to be such a useful and viable science of personality types and relationships between them, still does not have an official scientific status?
A.B. When Aushra made her great discovery, it was so massive that scientists did not know what science to attribute it to - sociology, psychology, computer science, or some other. Therefore, she did not have to defend a dissertation in socionics. Only in 1995, Aushra was awarded a diploma of discovery by the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences and was awarded the P.L. Kapitza medal.
Therefore, now we are no longer talking about the recognition of socionics by official scientific circles, but about the registration of its status as a new separate science, integrating many scientific areas. There is every reason for this. First of all, socionics is the science of the information structures of a person and society. Socionics cannot be narrowed down to the level of social psychology, because it allows you to describe not only the processes that happen to a person in society, but also political processes, as well as to model their further development. Of course, socionics complements sociology in the field of studying microgroups. Our Institute of Socionics also cooperates with the Institute of Sociology on a number of programs, but the range of possibilities of socionics goes far beyond the scope of sociology.
V.M. What is necessary for the further development of socionics and what steps do you intend to take in this direction?
A.B. First, the support of the official scientific community is needed, and we already have it. For example, seven doctors of sciences from Ukraine and Russia participate in the editorial board of our international journal "Socionics, Mentology, and Psychology of Personality". These are doctors of sociological, psychological, and pedagogical sciences: Donchenko E.A., Marakhovsky L.F., Saenko G.M., Sagach G.M., Reinin G.M., and three academicians: I.A. Zyazyun, N.N. Obozov, V.V. Novikov - president of the International Academy of Psychology, and others. In Ukraine and Russia, several Ph.D. dissertations in socionics have already been defended.
In Israel, which is considered one of the recognized leaders in information technology, the International Academy of Sciences is being created, and a department of socionics will be created under it. This indicates the recognition of socionics not only in the near, but also in the far abroad.
Secondly, we need a consolidation of efforts of socionists and an active exchange of opinions. For this purpose, we regularly hold international conferences, and since 1995 we have been constantly publishing the journal "Socionics", which has gained authority among teachers, practising psychologists, and personnel management specialists. In addition, more than a dozen books on socionics have already been published, and a two-volume book of Aushra has been published in St. Petersburg, which makes it possible to expand the circle of people interested in socionics and wishing to take part in its further development.
Thirdly, sponsorship of state structures is necessary. Unfortunately, we have not received it yet, so we have a number of difficulties with the creation of a full-fledged research laboratory and its technical equipment.
V.M. At the conference, one of the leaders of the Kyiv school of socionics - Yermak V.D. - expressed an opinion that although “a woman is also a person, she is not able to create anything significant in science, especially if she is a woman of a humanities type”? Do you agree with him?
A.B. Of course not. The creator of socionics is a woman, but it is developed by both men and women, including humanities scholars, who combine abstract-figurative thinking and creativity with a well-developed sphere of feelings, allowing them to penetrate deeply into the spiritual world of a person and into the area of their emotions and relationships with other people.
V.M. The same speaker expressed another opinion that since socionics does not have any specific niche among the sciences, including the humanities, it cannot be developed by humanities scholars, but only natural scientists? Isn't it more logical to assume that a theory that has not been developed to the level of practical application precisely by humanities types of personality may turn out to be simply dead and unviable?
A.B. Socionics combines the natural and humanities sciences. It has its own conceptual apparatus, its own terminology. The humanities, using the apparatus of socionics, can come closer to natural sciences. Therefore, it is impossible to attribute socionics to any one science, for example, the humanities, as well as to delete it from its ranks. This is an integrating science, and it should be developed by people of different professional areas.
V.M. What radical measures are you going to take against socionics chauvinism, does it concern women, humanities people, people with other attitudes, quadra antagonism, etc.?
A.B. Fortunately, cases of any kind of chauvinism are quite rare. Pluralism, accepted in our circles, excludes radicalism, but there are exceptions.
V.M. What trends does the development of socionics currently have, and are they more promising for the development of theory or practical use?
A.B. As the last conference showed, the theory of socionics began to develop more rapidly with the arrival of new forces in it - specialists of various professions, in which they found opportunities for further development with the help of socionics and, at the same time, enriched our science with new approaches. A new direction has been created - synchronism, which deals with the analysis of historical events and studies the laws of history management. As for practice, socionics has already quite firmly penetrated into pedagogy, psychology, and sociology, personnel management. Its principles are used in the process of formation of space crews. Many socionics technologies have been created that have served as a basis for the effective development of the practical application of socionics. This direction is called applied socionics.
V.M. How can socionics be useful to the powerful of this world?
A.B. As Bulgakov said in the words of Woland: "Never ask anything from the powers that be - they will give it themselves." That's why we don't ask. People come to us and ask for advice, and we are happy to help. But if we talk about the benefits of socionics for those who have power and money in their hands, then we can say that socionics, first of all, is indispensable in the management consulting of large enterprises - where it is difficult to work effectively with a large amount of information without carrying out an adequate and rational recruitment.
We also have experience of working with city governments, which will continue to benefit from socionics recommendations, both on effective team building and on other aspects of management.
Socionics allows you to look at socio-political events from an unexpected angle in order to prevent possible failures. So, for example, the ill-conceived appointment of Kiriyenko to the post of prime minister led to a new economic crisis in Russia and Ukraine. This could have been avoided by using the advice of professional socionists and trusting them.
V.M. Thanks for the meaningful conversation. We hope that good luck will accompany socionics, which rightfully deserves it. After all, the 21st century is the century of the information society, in which the main economic problems will surely be solved, and interpersonal problems will begin to be effectively solved, and this is unlikely to be possible without the participation of socionics - the science of society harmonisation created by a woman!

So, Jedi Survivor is the first game I’m playing on my PS5, and here’s my impressions on it. For context, I have just beaten Dagon in the Forest ring and am playing on Jedi Knight difficulty
As for why this is so long after the hype (ya know, one month)…well fuck you ya clicked on this anyways
Game looks good…but there’s still some of the same tech problems from the last game. Texture pop is really bad, basically every customization screen takes at least 2 seconds for the textures to unpixelate. In fact, one of the textures on one of the clothing options is just fucking broken (the one with clone trooper boots).
Also there’s some weird…what I can only describe as screen tearing that happens sometimes. The camera will move and the skybox gets a bit pixelated and jagged for a few moments. During initial setup there was a setting about camera blur I think? Maybe that’s something to do with it?
Combat feels…heavier in the original, in a bad way. All of Cal’s swings feel like they take longer then before to hit. That and somehow small groups of enemies feel WAY harder to deal with in the first game. Three scout troopers and a single storm trooper in the distance were not this hard in the first game. Also not a fan of the change to slow and especially the triangle button on the two saber style.
The story feels…I don’t know. I see what they’re going for, but it just isn’t clicking for me so far. That opening mission is very stylish with the long walk, but those guys you work with are introduced way too late in the mission for me to care about them dying though I’m impressed that they pulled the rug out from me on Bodo dying so far.
Cal and gang splitting up is fine but also…ok this is a “other things floating around the current discussion” thing, but I see the mystery of “Why did Cal and Cere fall out?” And my mind goes to “What did Peter Parker do to ruin everything?” That Wells has been teasing for the last year. That’s not the game’s fault, that’s just a me thing of being tired of this kind of setup. Greez is still the best and he’s gotten more likable by the minute…though I can’t figure out why he can’t just unlock the door so I can get to the goddamn aquarium.
I think part of my problem with the plot and the game so far in comparison to Fallen Order is that…it kind just dumps your ass in this huge open plane and says “Go that way, also here’s a bajillion other things”. Fallen Order, while having huge maps, was still kind of linear but with clever secrets and shortcuts in the style of Metroidvanias. Here…the whole thing’s just too fuckin big all at once.
”Well just go to where the story is and let that be your guide”
I mean yeah…but that feels kind of against what the devs are trying to impart on me here. I get the message of “here’s the story, also this big chunk for you to go around in and stuff”. I think this is probably why I don’t find BOTW interesting (haven’t played it, this is speaking from impressions). That whole “the game dumps you in the world, says the story is that way and just lets you go” thing everyone praises it for sounds like a nightmare to me. Really hope this doesn’t turn into another Elden Ring/RDR2 debacle
One more point on the story, and again this is 100% a me thing, the minute they started talking about The High Republic I started to check out. And before you say anything about me being an Old EU elitist, here’s a nuclear take: I don’t care about/like The Old Republic either. Ironic considering I’m the history guy, but yeah I just don’t care. Part of it is because I played KOTOR1 for the first time as a junior in college…in 2020, and didn’t enjoy myself at all, part of it is because I always find that sort of setting to be a lot of “it’s like the modern thing, but slightly different!”, part of it is because for the ancient past, their tech and culture seems…almost identical to the current timeframe, and that apparently everyone back then was Uber powerful compared to all the weaksauce guys now. Again, this is 100% a me thing I don’t blame the game for, just something that’s holding me back.
I know that whole spiel was very negative, but that’s because I’m just better at articulating my issues with the game then what I like about it. I am still enjoying the experience, I’m just not constantly creaming my jeans like it seemed everyone else was a month ago, in between talking about the gigabyte issue.
Anyways, here’s some random miscellaneous hopes, questions and notes:
-Hope there’s a red lightsaber Crystal and inquisitor armor like the free update in the last game
-Hope you can get actual Jedi robes
-How the hell do you mark collectibles? There’s the waypoint markers but the way the tip describes it makes it sound like how you could scan Riddler trophies in the Arkham games
-Dagon using the force on his stub of an arm is cool, but not as cool as how they did that idea in the 2003 clone wars
-Cal looks weird as shit with a beard in the custom screen. It looks like it’s fake. Looks mostly fine in the world though
-Cameron Monaghan and Debrah Wilson still look really odd in game. Cere’s still got those huge eyes and Cal’s face just looks…odd, I think it’s the chin. I don’t know if that’s just a problem with the models or the photoscans they did, it just looks off.
-There better be more then just this one planet and Coruscant, because if there’s less then the first game I’m going to be very cross.
-Getting REAL tired of this prospector planet
-Is the Mantis no longer customizable?
-WHEN THE FUCK DO I GET RID OF THESE SEEDS?!
-Do the stables…do anything?
-Spawn of Oogoo is a cheap as shit boss and is the only time I lowered the difficulty, I have no shame in saying that.
-Hope there’s something like the crashed Venator, that was my favorite local in the first game

My profession requires that I meet, from time to time, with clients and superiors in an office setting. My clients are well off (I manager high rise buildings, they own said buildings) and it would be great to wear a nice pair of black western boots. I recently found a paid of narrower square toe ariats but realize they look more like motorcycle boots. I want a nice, sexy pair of snip toe boots for special occasions or meetings. Any advice? Thank you all for your time.

February 2001: It’s a bright new era for Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. After years of mediocrity and flirts with relegation in the 1990s, a new ownership group is taking over from that cheapskate Alan Sugar. Meet your new overlords in English National Investment Company and your new chairman, Daniel Levy! Its sure to be a great start of a beautiful journey!
May 2001: Finishing 12th is not what you would call ideal. No European football. Not to mention bowing out in the FA Cup Semis and League Cup third round. Enjoy this new manager in Glenn Hoddle.
2001-02 : Sol Campbell signed with our eternal rivals in Arsenal! Levy didn’t offer him a new contract? What?? Doesn’t he know those Gunner clowns can’t be taking our players like that? We also finish 9th but made the League Cup final. It helps having the return of our goal scoring phenom in Teddy Sheringham. Adding Gustavo Poyet helps too. Still no European football.
2002-03: The best way to fight back into the elite is to have more goal scorers right? Welcome Robbie Keane from Leeds United! A crafty piece of business on our end! Him and Sheringham power us to…10th place. The fuck? And third round exits in the Cups…
2003-2004: Glenn Hoddle is underachieving! Get rid of him. David Pleat can surely handle the task at hand. Nope, we finished 14th…and still no trophies. But hey check out our shiny new forward in Jermaine Dafoe.
May 2004: Sol Campbell becomes a key contributor to Arsenal’s Invincibles season and wins the Premier League title. Does it feel cold?
2004-2005: Here’s our new manager in Jacques Santini ~goes 5-4-5~ ok never mind. Here’s our REAL new manager in Martin Jol, much more quality. He’s got the gusto and know-how to guide us to 9th and no trophies. At least Jermaine Defoe was the club top goal scorer…and Ledley King is coming into his own.
May 2005: Our other eternal rivals Chelsea win their first Premier League thanks to that outlandish manager Jose Mourinho and oligarch Roman Abramovich. All they do is buy players whenever they please. Pfft, that won’t be sustainable, they’ll come back to Earth eventually.
2005-06: Martin Jol has been a massive improvement to our fortunes. No trophies yet but we’re back in Europe. It’s good to be back in the UEFA Cup, think of the tv revenue. 5th place is a nice finish. Robbie Keane and newcomer Mido carried us to this spot. We should be keep them around for a while. Bringing in experienced talent like Edgar Davids and this young defensive midfielder in Tom Huddlestone helps. And check out our new record signing in Jermaine Jenas.
2006-07: Michael Carrick is a great defensive midfielder but Manchester United want his services. Here, take him. Edgar Davids is also much too old to be playing Premier League football. Our loss is also our gain with 15 million quid in the books. Let's invest that into a brand-new world class striker in Dimitar Berbatov. And Carrick's replacement in Didier Zokora certainly helps us...but we finish 5th again. No tropies either...at least European football?
2007-08: Jermaine Dafoe and Mido are gone. We need to replace them. Darren Bent seems like a good idea. But who the hell is this young left-back named Gareth Bale? Why is he worth 14 million pounds? Whatever, we need depth, he probably won't be much. Snap up this Jonathan Woodgate guy, too, someone has to help Ledley King here!
Oct 25, 2007: So you sacked Martin Jol at halftime against Getafe because reasons? Maybe if you stopped selling all his good players the division wouldn't have started. The fans are not pleased about this at all. Smooth them over with Juande Ramos from Chelsea.
League Cup Final 2008: All this leads to an 11th place finish, but fear not - YOU WON THE LEAGUE CUP! The first trophy since 1999, a true triumph. Certainly Spurs can aim higher now right?
2008-09: Juande Ramos is a fraudulent piece of shite that doesn't deserve to work in North London. We've promptly canned him for the legend that is Harry Redknapp. Just look at him inspire us to...8th place. We made the League Cup Final broken glass window and we've lost to Manchester United. And sold them Berbatov because money. This is shit. Enjoy this new midfielder signing in Luka Modric. He'd only become one of the best players in the world, nothing too crazy. Oh and Robbie Keane is back. So is Jermaine Defoe! Yay?
2009-10: A full season of Redknapp ball has led to a glorious prize! 4TH PLACE! Tottenham Hotspur will be playing under the lights on Tuesday and Wednesday! Play the music....THE CHAMPPPIONS! All it cost was loaning out Keane, selling Bent, and bringing in Peter Crouch. What a team we have forming. This Aaron Lennon kid is turning into quite the player. Oh and that Gareth Bale kid we paid a premium for? Yea, he's playing left winger now.
2010-2011: Champions League football requires Champions League talent. Quickly, let's eye up cheap deals for Rafael van der Vaardt, Sandro, and William Gallas. The attacking front of Crouch, Bale, Defoe, van der Vaardt, and Roman Pavlyuchenko powered us to 5th. It’s been a tough test balancing these nights. But did you see our massive victories against both Milan teams? I think we'll be back here in no time. Is it really a bad season without winning any trophies?
2011-12: A critical season. Harry Redknapp's contract is set to expire and Daniel Levy hasn't really been known to give coaches pay raises unless they merit it. Unfortunately, Peter Crouch is too old to keep around. Off to Stoke City with you, lad, thanks for that night at the San Siro. Bringing Emmanuel Adebayor from the exile of Manchester City should be a like-for-like swap. It all powers us to finish 4th again! HUZZAH! Another season of Champions League revenues! But still no Cups to take home.
2012 CL Final: Unfortunately, Chelsea did something incredible and won the Champions League in the most chaotic final in recent memory. Thus, for finishing 4th, you get Europa League football...god I hate Chelsea.
2012-13: Gareth Bale is becoming an elite winger without elite help. We've also decided to do something ridiculously unpopular and sell Luka Modric to Real Madrid for huge money. van der Vaardt is also out the door to Hamburg. The revenue brings in Hugo Lloris, Mousa Dembele, Clint Dempsey, and Jan Vertonghen. Under the plucky Andre Villas-Boas we finish 5th and go back to Europa. But our Cup showing was even more abysmal this season. Gareth Bale potted 21 goals...oh god he's next to go isn't he?
2013-14: The worst day has come. Gareth Bale has been sold to Real Madrid. He's joining up with Modric and Cristiano Ronaldo. The money reinvested brings in Christian Eriksen, Erik Lamela, Paulinho, Etienne Capoue, and the meme known as Roberto Saldado. Andre Villas-Boas' tenure was short-lived. Tim Sherwood is a former Spurs lad, surely he can lead us to greatness. If you call 6th place and no trophies greatness.
CL Final 2014: Luka Modric and Gareth Bale become key contributors to Real Madrid's Decima in the Champions League. Bale also scores one of the best goals of the campaign in the Copa Del Rey against Barcelona. The fans are pissed at Daniel Levy and ENIC.
2014-15: We've been knocking on the door of the elite English teams for a few seasons now. Time to put up or shut up. Tim Sherwood, you are not that guy pal. Mauricio Pochettino, welcome to Spurs. Here's the plucky academy kid in Harry Kane. Please get him firing, our striker woes are well-known. You want to sell Gylfi Sigurdsson and Sandro for this League One prospect in Dele Alli? Ok if you say so. Who the hell is Eric Dier and why do you want him? Culminating in a fifth place finish and League Cup final. Harry Kane scored 21 goals though...whoa.
2015-16: Defense needs an upgrade. Let's buy this experienced Belgian in Toby Alderwaiald. Him and Vertonghen played together before, surely it will work. We also need a left winger. How about Hueng-Min Son? He's been torching defenses for Leverkusen, he can surely do it here. The top teams are having a down season, now is the time to strike. We can smell the Premier League title in our grasp.
Final Matchday 2016: They finished third in a two-horse race after Leicester decided to have the greatest sports story ever play out in real life. It seems like a missed opportunity, but there is plenty to build on. Poch's team is coming together. Kyle Walker and Danny Rose are molding into elite fullbacks. The Belgians and Lloris are brick walls. Harry Kane is becoming a world-class striker. He even won the Golden Boot! They just need a little bit more to get over the trophy drought.
2016-17: Ok this is the year. We made it back to the Champions League, but this will be the last year at White Hart Lane. It's much too old for this modernizing football club. We need a really big stadium to bring in that sweet matchday revenue like our rivals. And I'm talking REALLY big, the best in all of England. It would be nice to fill it with some Champions League revenue and some silverware no? Well, seems like we finished 2nd and didn't win any Cups...AGAIN. But hey, Harry won the Golden Boot again! Dele Alli took serious strides in becoming a generational talent. Progress is progress amirite?
Final Matchday 2017: Chelsea win their 4th Premier League title since Abramovich took over. At least you finished above Arsenal again...that's a win isn't it?
2017-18: Kyle Walker has been sold to Manchester City because we like money over glory. Don't worry, we have a solid replacement with Kieran Trippier. We'll use the Walker money to bring a new defender in Davinson Sanchez from Ajax and right winger in Lucas Moura from PSG. Oh and for the hell of it, here's Serge Aurier from PSG too. Glorious depth. We still don't have a reliable backup striker, but how about a cheap deal for the aging legs of Fernando Llorente. He was good in a past life right?
Nov 1, 2017: By God, we've done it. We've slain the evil empire in Real Madrid. It's hard to believe a team of this size and caliber could scar the kings of Europe. Surely the only way is up from here.
March 2018: Nope, the knockout stages pit you up against a thunderous Juventus team that makes you their English bitch. Giorgio Chiellini goes on to make one of the most overused memes in all of football Twitter. "Iz di history of di Tottenham..."
Final Matchday 2018: Respectable 3rd place finish behind Manchester United lads. Too bad no trophies to go with it. Sigh... what else is new? We finished above Arsenal again...yay? Meanwhile, Kyle Walker is part of the Centurion Manchester City team...I need more liquor.
2018-19: Harry Kane is starting to get impatient. He needs to start seeing some silverware soon. Hueng-Min Son is emerging as a top forward in the league. Dele’s dropped off a bit but it’s just a blip, nothing to worry about. Jan and Toby are rock-solid at the back. We have a plucky solid squad, filled with some high-end talent but we didn't get any reinforcements in the summer...what the fuck? You do realize squads transition every season, ENIC? Where's Poch's reinforcements? Why did you sell Mousa Dembele mid-season, he was still useful! Oh dear god, what have they done? Oh that’s right…the new stadium. It’s still not done yet is it?
UCL QFs 2019: This is massive test. We managed to beat Barcelona in the group stage, and cake-walked through Dortmund in the Round of 16 but this is a new beast. We're up against the defending PL champs in Man City. Harry is hurt but we've got Sonny, Lucas, Chrisitan, Dele, and Fernando to make up for his goals. A huge pen save by Hugo on Aguero keeps us in the tie. Son puts us up 1-0 in the first leg. Going to the Etihad without Harry, it's a tight affair. Son and Sterling trading goals, Fernando kneeing in the go-ahead, Bernardo Silva pulling one back, 4-3 Man City, and seeing out the final whistle. Away goals take us over the line. Onto the Semis!
UCL SFs 2019: This Ajax team downed Real Madrid. They're gonna walk all over us. At least in the first leg. The second leg is a masterpiece. Lucas scored not one, not two, but THREE away goals to push us to glory! Gas up the bus boys, WE ARE GOING TO THE UCL FINAL!!!!
UCL Final 2019: What the actual fuck? How was that a handball on Moussa Sissoko??? IT HIT HIS BLOODY SHOULDER! You gifted this match to Liverpool, UEFA! (This is the moment that broke Tottenham Hotspur) And why the hell didn't Lucas start the game? After that fantastic hat trick? I don't care if Kane was fit to play, this is massive managerial blunder. Maybe this is the summer things start to change. All we got for this was a runner-up medal. At least we finished 4th in England. BUT STILL NO MOTHER FUCKING TROPHIES! writer proceeds to smash his laptop in the process
2019-20: The UCL Final should be a springboard for another potential title charge. Poch is calling out ownership for not wanting to give him signings. They only fumbled the Paulo Dybala signing, surely we can still trust Levy and ENIC right? Here's Giovani Lo Celso instead and Tanguy Ndombele to shore up the midfield. Here's our replacement for Danny Rose in Ryan Sessegnon. Unfortunately, Chrisitan Eriksen wants out and we let his contract run down. He leaves in January for basically nothing. Results are starting to flounder so Poch, pack your furniture and get out of our house. Meet our new manager: Jose Mourinho, the Special One. Just nobody tell Daniel he's been sacked infamously by both Chelsea and Manchester United for being a toxic presence. At least the new stadium is ope---ah fuck, it's COVID. An injury-plagued campaign culminates in a 6th place finish, but still no trophies. Another finish over those Gunners though! Why aren't you fans happy? We can't spend money, don't you see we didn't get any matchday revenue???
FA Cup Final 2020: Even though we finished above them, Arsenal take home an FA Cup with a squad arguably much less talented than Spurs. It was also against Chelsea...who finished above you. Can someone drive me to the nearest cliff please?
2020-21: A full season of Mourinho-ball. Tensions are starting to run high. Kane is pissed at the direction we're going. Jan Vertonghen and Kieran Trippier are gone. Dele Alli forgot how to play football under Jose. We need a new center-back...too goddam expensive. Let's convert Eric Dier to CB and have play back there, what's the worst that can happen? Fans aren't happy at all. I know the solution: you kids remember Uncle Gareth?? He's baaaaack! Sure, he's in his early 30s and a shell of himself but he's won 4 UCL titles and scored that fabulous bike kick in 2018. He's still class. Here’s a bunch of mid table players in Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Matt Doherty, and Joe Rodon to supplement the team.
March 2021: Europa League is quite winnable. Surely nothing bad will happen like you losing to a team who's manager is in prison for tax fraud. breaking glass sounds you fumbled a 2-0 agg lead to Dinamo Zagreb...who's manager was in prison for tax fraud. You're fucking pathetic you know that?
April 2021: Jose Mourinho is a dinosaur of English football. Look at him playing park the bus tactics while we can't defend score. Let's get rid of this cancer before it spreads. Who cares if it's six days before the League Cup Final against City? Why can't Ryan Mason see it out?
EFL Cup Final 2021: It's not a blowout loss, but it's clearly an overmatching. City run rampant on Spurs as they lift the trophy they basically own at this point. Fans are calling for Levy's head. In fact, they were calling for it as early as the FA Cup loss to Everton in the fourth round.
Final Matchday 2021: Jose refused to play Gareth Bale. Looking back that was a terrible decision. Bale and Kane power us to a 7th place finish. We finish above Arsenal again. It's a successful season in ENIC's checkbook. And there's still European football to play. Harry Kane wins another Golden Boot and the Golden Ball for most assists. We have to keep him around.
May 2021: Kieran Trippier and Christian Eriksen become key contributors to Atletico Madrid and Inter Milan's respective title wins. In other news, Juan Foyth wins the Europa League with Villarreal while on loan. Does that sound familiar?
CL Final 2021: Chelsea find another way to win another Champions League title, despite sacking a manger midway through the season and having misfiring forwards. And it was against Man City…who we beat every now and then.
2021-22: We need a director of football to help us match up to our rivals better. Fabio Paratici built Juventus in the most dominant club in Italy, surely he can replicate that in England. No we won't hire Paulo Fonseca and his 7 assistant coaches, way too much payroll. And no, you can't hire Gennaro Gattuso for his derogatory comments. Wait, where the hell is Harry Kane? Ahh I see he wants to be sold to Man City. HA! Doesn't he know he just signed an extension? Son has too, so if Harry wants to play hardball let him. Quickly, hire Nuno Espirito Santos as our fail-safe. He's not what we wanted but we fucked up so we're fucked now. Wait, how can we be so critical of ourselves? CHECK OUT THIS GLORIOUS STADIUM!!!!
Nov 2021: Nuno is terrible, he's lost 5 in a row. Who cares if we beat Man City on opening day? Get him out NOW! Get Antonio Conte in. It's another former Chelsea manager to restore our standing in the club.
Final Matchday 2022: HUZZAH! After a turbulent season, losing to wifi-password named clubs in the Conference League then getting kicked out of it for COVID reasons, Conte calling us out in the media multiple times, we galvanized ourselves to a 4th place finish. We're back, and it's thanks to the Juve rejects in Cristian Romero, Dejan Kulusevski, and Rodrigo Bentancur. Son won the Golden Boot, a true testament to his development at Spurs. Back on track. But still...no trophies. Another finish above Arsenal...they should just make a team award for that at this point.
2022-23: A full season of a happier Conte should lead us to silverware. Let’s not dawddle, start making signings. Richarlison always victimized us at Everton, let’s bring him to back up Kane. Yves Bissouma did the same at Brighton and we do need a batter box to box midfielder. Him too. Ivan Perisic on a free for Conte’s wingback. Surely our defense is fine in the hands of Romero, Dier, Clement Lenglet, and Ben Davies. And Djed Spence because reasons.
April 2023: It’s been a terrible season. From having our best start to a season since 1967 to bottling game after game after game. Tepid football, lack of inspiration. Despite small triumphs like winning the Champions League group stage and mugging Manchester City of points again, they have failed miserably again. Son’s form is gone. Richarlison doesn’t know how to score. The defense is wide open. It implodes after giving up 3 goals to a bottom table Southampton after being up 3-0. Conte is furious, criticizes ownership again, and is canned back to Italy. Fabio Paratici was also banned by FIFA for cooking Juve’s books. To make it worse, Arsenal was leading the top of the table and almost won the title. Thank the football gods for Man City and their oil money franchise. That means nothing as the season prolapses, we fall out of European contention, and finish 8th. No manager, no director football, toxic fanbase crying out for changes. I have now developed heavy drinking. "ZE DON'T WANT TO PLAY FOR SOMETHING IMPORTANT! 20 YEARS THERE IS THE OWNER AND NEVER WON SOMETHING!"
UEL Semi-Final 2023: Did I mention this gets worse because it does. A couple seasons back, Spurs swapped Erik Lamela and 25 million for promising Spanish youngster Bryan Gil from Sevilla. Gil was never favored by Nuno or Conte, with the Italian basically exiling him from the team unless he had no other choice but to play him. Gil would be loaned back to Sevilla where he assisted Erik Lamela's game-winning goal in stoppage time to book Sevilla a place in the Europa League final. I want to drink bleach...
Twenty-three years of failures and memes, Tottenham look like a lost club. All the shiny toys, but nothing to show for it. Champagne expectations with a beer budget. Does the ownership really value profit that much? Daniel Levy always insists his goal every season is to win a trophy. But how do you do that without attracting top talent? They squandered a window in 2019 and can’t remake the glory. They've made signing after signing that are inconsistent or not at the level to win trophies. It feels like they value cheap deals rather than actual talent. It's killing the club. Kane has been a legend at the club but he’s ready to move on. I don’t blame him, his career is incomplete with some hardware. But the future looks bleak. What will Spurs do next? Will they do a full rebuild and risk the possibility of no European football? Or will they try to win at least one trophy before Kane's contract is up?

Hey all,
I guess the title says it all, but here's some additional context. I'm currently using a 2019 MacBook Pro which appears to be dying a slow death, presumably due to the shifted focus inside Apple toward their new Apple Silicon Chips. I bought the MBP back in university when I was moving around a lot, but that's not the case anymore so having a powerful laptop is not a requirement anymore (on the rare occasions I do need one, my dying 16" MBP is still good enough).
I've been thinking about replacing it, but I was unsure which route is the best to go. I was initially dead-set on the Mac Mini M2, but the price combined with the fact that I basically use zero Mac-exclusive applications got me thinking). My requirements basically boil down to

• Be relatively quiet (at least don't sound like an F35 taking off)
• Suitable for software development (light virtualization, so +16GB RAM is a must)
• Suitable for light video editing (max 2-3 4K tracks, mostly screen recordings, occasional color grading, mostly H264 footage from my ZV-e10)
• Occasional really light gaming (I'm talking Binding of Isaac light)

The cheapest Mac mini I was able to find, suiting those requirements, is 1.429 EUR (10 Core M2 Pro, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD), 1.636 EUR with the bigger 1TB SSD.
While I do like MacOS, I don't mind running Linux on an alternative system and dual-booting into Windows when I need to. My alternative system options seem to be as follows:

• Buy an Intel NUC or other Intel Mini PC (as far as I understand, Intel Quick Sync is significantly better than AMDs media engine?) barebones and equip it myself, which probably ends up being half the Mac Minis price. (Intel NUC13ANHi7 is around 580 EUR + 65 EUR for 32 GB of RAM + 80 EUR for a reasonably fast PCIe 4 SSD comes out to 725 EUR)
• Build a DIY PC in a small form factor case like the fractal design ridge, not as mini but still really compact. Comes out to around 1.100 EUR (can get a used RTX 2070 for cheap) with a 12700K and 32GB of DDR5

As far as I see it, the only option where the Mac beats both options is in terms of power efficiency. However, for the price of the MacMini, I can run both of the setups for quite some time, even at 36ct/kWh. Both a Mini PC and the Small form factor build beat the Mac in terms of upgradability. The SF build is almost certainly the most powerful (and power-hungry) of the three.
What would your recommendation be? Do you have any feedback on my thought process? How do mini PCs with "regular" (x86) CPUs perform in terms of noise under (medium) loads?
Appreciate your feedback

"Okay," Sookie called out. "That's a wrap!"
A ragged cheer went up from the cast and crew. Deacon walked around, clapping his hands and cheering loudly, making sure everyone else was cheering, too. Sookie walked over to her chair and sank into it, her feet throbbing in time to the cheering people around her. She smiled at anyone who caught her eye and just relaxed.
This was the end of a grueling, forty-five day shooting schedule that had been supposed to be ten hour days, but had ended up being more like thirteen to eighteen hour days for her. They weren't done filming the season. Far from it, in fact. But these were the worst shots, and the cast and crew involved had all agreed to push through hard until it was done. After this, they had about two more months of shooting on a more normal schedule, and then editing could begin.
Deacon, despite his enthusiasm for the end of the push, had not had to attend most of the shots they got, and had instead, been spending 'quality' time with a couple of local groupies and the White Lady. Sookie didn't begrudge him this, of course. She worried a little about the amount of booger sugar going up his nose at times, but his agent had repeatedly assured her that he was using far more often during shoots than during his off time.
Besides, it was only fitting that the star of the show should enjoy the fruits of his fame. Sookie herself had picked up a bisexual couple a week or two ago, when they had a shoot end 'early' (at nine PM) and the next's day's shoot wasn't scheduled to begin until eight AM. She had left set almost immediately and headed to a local gay bar, where someone had recognized her from her OnlyFans days and insisted upon introducing his boyfriend.
She sighed, remembering the sensation of two well-endowed men thrusting into her, and how she'd simply melted when the one behind her leaned forward and around to kiss the other. Bi men were soooo hawt...
She promised herself she'd try to find another bisexual 'gay' couple, now that she had the time.
Deacon had finally got everyone sufficiently enthusiastic -which was a credit to his charisma, really, as everybody was exhausted- and came over to sit next to her in his own chair.
"I am so ready for a couple weeks off," he said.
"It's one week," Sookie reminded him. "And then you need to be ready for the fight scenes. Have you been working with your choreographer?"
"I haven't really had the time..." Deacon whined, causing Sookie to sigh.
"Deek," she said, sitting up in her chair and turning to face him. "You haven't needed to be on set for the past two weeks. You've been coming to, in your own words, 'help keep morale up'. And while I do appreciate your efforts in that regards, it is far more important for you to be ready to shoot your fight scenes in a week. I'm serious here. You need to get with your choreographer and get your moves nailed down tight. We don't have time to push those shoots back any further."
Deacon held up his hands in surrender. "I'll be down at the dojo tomorrow, I swear."
"Tomorrow morning," Sookie insisted.
"Tomorrow morning," Deacon agreed. "In fact, I'm going to get the playbook and go over it tonight, to try to get a head start."
Sookie smiled and patted him on the knee as she rose. She didn't want to be here anymore. The PAs and crew could finish cleaning everything up so the teardown crews could get started tomorrow.
She found her personal assistant and instructed her to make sure everyone knew to do their own breakdowns, then left. Filming on set had certain advantages, including the fact that she was within walking distance of her hotel.
The security guard that Julie had insisted she maintain since that incident a few years ago with the psycho stan peeled herself off the wall she'd been holding up and fell into step behind her. Sookie wouldn't have minded so much, except Julie had carefully picked married, monogamous men and women to fill her security schedule with, to avoid any 'conflicts of interest'.
This gal, Linda Gottlieb, was probably the worst of all. She had a girlfriend and a boyfriend, and yet refused to sleep with anyone else. On top of that, she was as slender as Sookie, flat chested (which Sookie found to be a major turn on) and hard as a rock, with veiny arms and shoulders and even a few visible on her belly.
Sookie was a woman of many tastes, but skinny girls with visible veins and no tits were one of her more notable favorites, and so Linda's categorical refusal to so much as let Sookie slip a hand down her pants was grating.
Linda wasn't wearing a uniform. She wore a tight tank top and a loose flannel with the sleeves rolled up and the front unbuttoned over a pair of blue jeans and hiking boots. Sookie knew she had a gun on her somewhere, but couldn't speculate as to where.
Well, that's not true. Sookie imagined the handle sticking of her ass, riding up between the cheeks of that ass that all flat-chested women seemed to have that was categorically unfair to better-if-still-modestly endowed women like Sookie. She slowed down to get a peek at it.
"Looking at my ass again?" Linda asked.
"Yes," Sookie said. "I was wondering if you keep your gun there. The handle could fit between those cheeks and nobody would be the wiser."
Linda laughed and lifted her flannel to show a handgun tucked into her belt on her hip. "Sorry to disappoint," she said. "But I kinda need to keep it where I could easily get at it."
Sookie sighed, her pleasant illusion ruined.
They turned left out of the studio gates and walked up the road. Despite the presence of the studio, this was kind of a rough area, so Sookie appreciated having some security as she made the walk. Not that she couldn't handle herself, but she'd learned the hard way that being taken by surprise left her as vulnerable as anyone.
They hadn't gotten more than a half a block before a ragged looking man approached them, reeking of booze and shit. His clothes were filthy and torn and he had a scraggly beard that ranged from a centimeter to three inches long, seemingly at random.
"Spare a dollar?" he asked.
"No," Linda said, stepping forward to catch his attention so Sookie could slip past.
"S'just a dollar, lady. I'll lick your pussy for it!" The man leered at Linda, who didn't blink or flinch, but rather gave him a hard shove back.
"Don't you fucking crowd me, talking shit like that," she said menacingly, taking another step forward to keep him off balance.
"Be respectful," she added with force. The man looked like he wanted to argue, but something in the way she looked or held herself made it clear to him that Linda was not to be trifled with. He stepped back until his back was to the wall of the building behind him and watched as Linda turned and caught back up to Sookie, who was watching the whole thing over her shoulder.
"Fucking Dykes!" the man shouted. "Suck my dick!"
"You'd think that at least one of them would figure out that being aggressive like that doesn't work," Sookie mused.
"It doesn't work on you or me, but that's because we know we could take his head off if he tried to get violent," Linda said. "Most women aren't fighters. They'll give him cash just to get him to stop harassing them."
"Fair enough," Sookie said.
This was a common occurrence. Almost every time Sookie walked to her hotel, at least one homeless person would try to panhandle her. Sometimes, if she had any cash, she'd give them some. Once in a blue moon, one would engender enough sympathy for a good payout, a hundred bucks or so. But most of the time, they struck her as entitled ruffians, living on the street thanks to their own bad decisions and trying to get by on other people's labor.
She knew that was an old-fashioned mindset. She knew a lot of these people would, if they got clean of whatever they were using, sort out their lives and take care of business. She knew that the DCM Group even had a charitable arm who straight up gave condos and large sums of money to many homeless people, who immediately used that gift to get back on their feet. She knew the stats, too.
But this particular area seemed to attract the sort of homeless people whom right-wing motards used as an archetype for all homeless people. Twice, someone from the crew had been assaulted, causing Sookie to declare that she and the stunt coordinator were the only ones allowed to walk to and from the studio.
"I wonder if they're actually even homeless," Linda said, her thoughts echoing Sookie's.
"Me too," Sookie said. "I mean, it's a very poor neighborhood, adjacent to a place where very wealthy people work. There's no rule that says you have to be homeless to panhandle."
Linda nodded. Sookie wondered idly if she'd been following her own logic, or seeking out a belief that made her feel better about judging the people here. She wasn't sure which, really.
The area they moved through got progressively nicer as they continued. They turned the last corner, with three blocks still to go when Sookie saw the next one.
This one was older. he only had about a week's worth of beard on his face, though Sookie could see that it was mostly gray. He wore similar clothes to the other one, the once-vibrant colors having long since faded towards a muted gray tone. His clothes, however, looked cleaner and the holes had all been neatly stitched. As they drew close, Sookie could read his sign.
Please help Leave a dollar or take a resume Will work for food
Sure enough, he had a stack of resumes weighted down with a rock next to him. Sookie stopped, intrigued and bent down to retrieve one. She handed the man a folded ten dollar bill at the same time. A reward for creativity in his panhandling, she thought.
She looked at it. The man had a pair of enlistments in the Marine Corps at the top of his work experience. It was back in the early 2000s, and it mentioned Helmand Province, which Sookie recalled had been at the center of a lot of the fighting in Afghanistan.
The next few lines were security companies, starting with a high-end competitor to the Group, and then a long sequence of construction and day-labor work, ending on his current work, which was "Self Employed - Private Investigations". Below that, he had a string of qualifications, including armed security, close protection and bail enforcement.
"This is actually quite a good resume," Sookie told him. She glanced up at the top to get his name, Richard Nixon.
"Richard Nixon?" Sookie asked. "Like the president?"
Richard nodded. "I'll work," he said hopefully. "I can swing a hammer and do plumbing. I'll do a full day's work for lunch and dinner, or a hundred bucks, whichever you prefer."
Sookie handed the resume to Linda, who looked down at it.
"Ain't much different than mine," she said. "Oorah."
"Oorah," Richard muttered back, seemingly on pure instinct.
"So why are you out here, Richard?" Sookie asked. "Your resume says you're self-employed as a private eye."
Richard shrugged. Sookie noted the redness and swelling of his nose. "Work's been scarce," he said. "Been getting fewer jobs for the last few years. Fewer jobs means less money, less money means losing my office, not being able to afford nice clothes, which leads to fewer jobs."
Sookie looked a question at Linda, who shrugged. "We're always looking for investigators. It can be hard to recruit former cops, and those we do are often old enough not to stay on for more than a few years before retiring."
Sookie smiled and nodded, turning back to Richard. "You want an interview?"
"Hell yeah," he said with some enthusiasm. "As long as they don't mind me looking a little rough around the edges."
"Where do you live?" Sookie asked. Richard gestured around. "Lost my apartment last month," he said. Sookie pursed her lips and then nodded and held out a hand to him.
"Come on, Richard. I'm Sookie, and this is Linda. I'll make you a deal. I'll get you a nice outfit to wear and arrange an interview at the LA office tomorrow. I'll put you up on my couch for the night, too. That way, you can shower and shave and look presentable for it. What do you think?"
Richard took her hand and let her help him up. "Are you serious?" he asked. Sookie nodded.
"Holy crap, thank you, lady. Sookie, I mean. Thank you." His eyes began to get watery. "I don't... I don't even know what to say. That would be amazing."
Sookie smiled, her heart wrenching for the guy. She knew he had a drinking problem, but she also remembered all those people the Group's charities helped. Get someone on their feet, and there was a good chance they'd stay there.
"Do you have stuff to get?"
"I uh... I have a storage shed. It's paid up through the end of the year," he said. "My stuff is safe there, I just need to go get my toiletries."
"Don't worry about that," Sookie said, stepping to the edge of the sidewalk and waiting for the traffic to clear enough to cross the road. "We can stop by a drug store, too."
----
Sookie and Linda took Richard shopping and got him everything he needed. Which wasn't much, really. Sookie had a spare toothbrush, razors, shaving cream and cologne at her hotel room. It was all stuff she kept on hand to be the best slut she could be, and make her dishes du jour feel welcome. They bought him deodorant and an electric beard trimmer, and decided to take a pit stop at a hair and nails salon next to the pharmacy.
The girls there had cooed and gooed over Sookie and Linda helping this man out, and refused to accept any money for the trim he got. Unfortunately, they weren't set up to shave a man (all of the other clients inside were women), but Richard protested that he was perfectly capable of shaving himself, so it all worked out.
The next stop was, at Sookie's insistence, one of the ultra-high-end men's clothing stores near her hotel. Linda had protested that simply taking a car to Walmart would be good enough, but Sookie would have none of that.
"Linda, it's been over six years since I've seen a person in Walmart that I'd be willing to give a handy to. It's been even longer since I've seen any clothing there that looked like it didn't come from Walmart, especially the suits. We're not going to Walmart."
As a result, Richard got fitted for a custom-tailored suit and outfitted with a tie that was a pleasant, deep blue, bespeckled with tiny, gold-embroidered Marine Corps logos. He seemed pleased with it, and had to keep wiping his eyes as he repeatedly and profusely thanked her.
When all was done, they finally went to the hotel. Sookie had a full suite on the top floor. It wasn't the biggest suite, but it was close, with two spare bedrooms, a living room and a full kitchen, in addition to a balcony that afforded her a great view of the city (so long as the smog wasn't too bad) and a private elevator to the rooftop pool.
Linda took her usual spot at the door to await her relief for the evening while Sookie showed Richard the large bathroom and made sure he had everything he needed. While he showered and shaved, she decided to review the script.
She walked over to the safe in the living room and carefully punched in her combination on the keypad.
The scripts for The Legend of Jimmy were like solid gold. Every studio out there wanted to get their hands on one, to steal ideas from. Every fan wanted to get one, just for the thrill of knowing what was going to happen next. During the second season's filming, they'd had multiple scripts stolen and leaked, and Sookie had learned to crack down on that. As a result, she was the only one who ever had a full set of scripts for any given season. She kept them safely under lock and key at all times.
She pulled out her working copy, which was different from the 'archive' copy she also kept in the safe. The working copy had all of her handwritten notes on it. She closed the safe back up and locked it, then sat down at the table and flipped open to the scenes they would be filming after the break. Using a red pen, she made notes for herself, things to remember during shooting, like camera angles and notes on the VFX.
She heard the shower turn off, but she was engrossed in her work when the door opened.
"Thanks again," Richard said, causing her to look up. He had a towel around his waist, but Sookie noted that he had a lean torso, with some muscle still there, despite a rough life. Clean shaven now, he looked much better. He'd never get a gig as a model, but he was handsome enough in his own way. Sookie smiled at him.
"You don't have to keep thanking me," she said. "I'm happy to help."
She closed her script and stood, walking it over to the safe. Obscuring her hands with her body, she punched in the code again and placed the script inside. She hadn't yet closed the door when she heard Richard mutter "Oh shit."
She turned to look and froze. He'd turned back towards the bathroom, and then dropped his towel by accident. He was currently in the process of picking it up, affording Sookie a great view of his ass and what might well have been considered a third leg hanging from between the other two.
It came almost to his knees.
A flush of heat went through her, washing away all thoughts of largess and generosity, and kindling a very selfish desire. She heard the spattering on the hardwood floor where she crouched as her usual over-the-top wetness kicked into high gear and soaked through her pants in seconds. She could feel herself throbbing as she eyed Richard's enormous member.
Her disguise slipped and the horns erupted from her head, her tail curled up painfully inside her pants and her skin turned red, with large patches of scales. Operating purely on instinct, she magicked up a veil of mundanity. She didn't want Richard to freak out, and this would keep him from registering her appearance as anything out of the ordinary.
He retrieved his towel and made to wrap it back around his waist, but Sookie shot to her feet and spun, already ripping her shirt off.
"Wait," she said. Richard froze, then turned to look at her over one shoulder. She tossed her shirt on the couch and peeled off her pants. She wasn't wearing any underwear or bra, of course. She never did.
"I just thought of a way you could thank me," she purred, taking a languid step forward. Richard reacted immediately to the sight of her naked, turning, his hog's leg stiffening and rising from its vertical hang slightly.
"Are you, uh... I mean... I'm not..." Richard stammered. Sookie stepped closer to him and put her hands on his shoulder, then ran them down his chest.
"I am damn sure I want to do this, if that's what you're asking," she said, her hands reaching lower as she stepped close enough to press her breasts into his ribs. She took hold of him and felt him grow almost immediately rock hard as he gasped.
"Wow," he said. "This is... This is like something from a porno with a bad script..." he said.
"Uh huh," Sookie said. "And we're about to do the fun parts of it." She pressed her lips into his, and then squealed in delight as he grabbed her by the ass and hoisted her up.
"Where?" he asked into her mouth.
"Pussy, mouth and ass," she replied. She felt the heat rush through his cheeks.
"I meant where in this room," he said.
"I don't fucking care," Sookie responded, lining his huge cock up with her most convenient hole and squirming down onto it with a loud gasp.
"In the bedroom!" Linda shouted. "Please, for the love of god, in the bedroom!"
----
Sookie awoke the next morning and rolled over to see if Richard was up for a little wake-and-shake. Her hands slapped the empty bed and she pouted.
"Richard?" she called, a wonderful aroma meeting her nose as she did. "Are you making coffee already? I'll fall in love with you, or deepthroat you, your choice, if you are!"
He didn't answer.
She opened her eyes and saw that his new suit was missing. An empty hanger was hooked to the coathanger next to the closet. She climbed out of bed, frowning, and walked out into the living room.
It was empty. She could smell the coffee even stronger, and she walked into the kitchen to find the coffee pot full and a business card sitting next to it. She picked it up and peered at it with sleep-bleary eyes.
"Eric Stephens, Private Investigations, Corporate Espionage, Bail Bonds, Security Consultation," she read out loud. There was a QR code on it, so she picked up her phone from where it had been flung to the floor last night and scanned it. While the page loaded, she glanced in the bathroom to see Richard's old clothes still piled there.
She glanced at her phone to see a very clean-shaven and well-dressed Richard smiling at the camera at the top of a very tastefully designed web page. She scrolled through it for a moment, confused. This was clearly him, but why had he given her a fake name? She supposed he could have had this nice website built back when he was still working enough to afford it, but... It seemed off. It didn't fit. Sookie didn't get it.
That was, until she looked to her own pile of clothes by the safe and saw the door still hanging open. With a gasp, she rushed over only to find the safe empty. Both of her scripts were gone!
"Shit!" she shouted.
The door opened and a large, muscular man dressed like a lawyer rushed in, a gun in hand.
"Miss Ohma, is everything all right?" he asked after scanning the room and peering through the open doors.
"No," Sookie wailed. "I just got my scripts stolen!"
"The gentleman who left this morning?" her guard asked. She nodded. "I'm so sorry, Miss Ohma. I would have stopped him if I knew."
"No, you did fine," Sookie said as her eyes filled with frustrated tears. "You're used to men heading out in the morning. Usually they do it after I wake up and we can get another good fuck in, but still... You didn't do anything wrong."
"He left a note," the guard said. "I saw it taped to the inside of the door." Sookie looked over and saw a folded piece of paper taped there. She stalked over and ripped it down, sniffling angrily and wiping at her eyes to read it.

 Dear Sookie, Last night was probably the best night I've had in my life. It's certainly the best night I can remember. If you ever want to do it again, just let me know. I left you a card by the coffee machine, and there's a full pot for you, as well. If you don't ever want to see me again, well, I guess I understand. I'm sorry to have left the way I did, but I'm a man of my word, and my client was willing to pay a lot of money for that script. I hope this doesn't hurt you too much. For what it's worth, I'm sorry if I upset you. Wishing you all the best, Eric 

Sookie crumbled up the paper and angrily threw it across the room.
"Motherfucker!" she shouted. The guard winced, but said nothing.
"He scammed me," Sookie said. "Got a nice new suit out of me, seduced me with that redwood growing between his legs and then ran off with my fucking scripts!"
She let her claws form and dug them into her thighs, carving bloody furrows that healed almost as fast as she made them. The guard started and rushed over.
"Ma'am, please," he said. "I'm not supposed to let you hurt yourself."
Sookie let him pull her hands up to her chest. She leaned into him for a moment. "You're married, aren't you?" she said.
"Uh, no," he said. Sookie turned her head to regard him. She didn't recognize him. "What's your name?"
"Devin, Ma'am," he said. "Devin Iglesias. This is my first shift on your detail."
"Who put you on this shift?"
"Uhh, Missus Williams. She said I'd enjoy this detail, and I agreed. I'm a huge fan of your show, Miss Ohma."
"Are you gay?" Sookie asked. Devin blinked. "Uh, no, Ma'am."
Sookie smiled. "I need you to do two things," she said.
"The second, and most important thing, I need you to call the office and ask for any information they have on a private investigator named Eric Stephens who works out of LA."
Devin nodded. "Yes, ma'am. And the first thing?"
Sookie smiled wider. "I need you to find out the real reason why Inanna thought you'd enjoy this posting."

Preface: While this guide will not include EVERY facet of leveling, it will give a deep dive into unique items for leveling. While some of these may be known, there are others that I hope will change how you level new characters. The focus is on gear sub level 20 that can be used all the way until act 10 or at least until you can get a better replacement unique throughout the leveling process.
Hello, my name is PeanutButterZebraHacker, or Peanut for short, and I love Path of Exile. I find myself playing this game whenever I have free time and with nearly 19k hours in the game, it's something I have loads of experience with. I am making this guide because I always hear about people HATING the leveling experience and for me... well I tend to enjoy it; however, this is because the way I level lets me pick nearly any build I want, something people often feel they cannot do when they make a new character.
This post will be VERY long, I understand that many may not read it, and that my formatting and order for this may need work if I want something more formal; though, for now I will just post how I see fit!
Leveling in PoE is often considered a chore that pigeon holes you into playing the same exact build (Hollow Palm normally, my aim is to change that). This guide will demonstrate every good leveling unique in the game and show how an individual can leverage these unique items to play almost any build they desire.
The bottom of this write-up will have a PoB with my favorite uniques to mess around with and a sample setup to see what you can do with the right gear!
​
Unique Items per slot: My favorite item per slot is in Bold.
Helmets: This slot is flexible for survival, damage, or speed!

1. Honourhome: This is by far the BEST leveling helmet in the entire game. While +2 may seem like a minor bonus, the fact that it can get TWO +2 implicit corruptions and then also have a level 2 empower socketed allows any skill with the right corruptions to have +9 to gem levels! The mana cost reduction is an additional bonus that shouldn't be forgotten either! It is INSANE when used alone or moreso when combined with the rest of the items on this list.
2. Thrillsteel: While I only consider this to be a glorified MTX, there is some merit with running this helmet on builds that cannot take advantage of Honourhome. The Onslaught is nice to have while leveling but because they removed its effect from in-town use, it is just that bit worse off.
3. Goldrim: The CLASSIC leveling helmet. This thing is cheap solid leveling helmet that can easily cap resistances through the acts.
4. Fairgraves Tricorne: This helmet is old but potentially usable. The "can be touched by tormented spirits" mod provides 50% increased attack, cast, and movement speed as well as 50% increased damage; however, you hardily encounter spirits in acts and will likely be overall less strong than the above.
5. Crown of Thorns: Really only viable with Ghostwrithe and Energy Blade, otherwise just a solid tanky option when you have nothing else.
6. Asenath's Mark: While I wouldn't suggest this for a spell casting build as long as Honourhome exists, especially because you give up the potential for two axioms for a bow, this can be solid for auxiliary damage in a bow build or extra curses/utility while leveling with a bow!

Note: The corruptions for helmets are avaliable on all helmets, not just honourhome. If there is a helmet you want to use, always be sure to price it out with the corruptions you want! A +2 Aoe/+2 Aura helmet is still really good for leveling with haste for the extra movement speed!
​
Body Armour: These options each have benefits that can be compared when choosing your build.

1. Thousand Ribbons: While everyone knows tabula as "the leveling unique", it should always be remembered that Thousand Ribbons exists. ESPECIALLY when corrupted with up to 50% increased damage, Thousand Ribbons provides large flat damage bonus, resistances, and other modifiers that are VERY helpful for leveling. If used with a +4 helmet or Honourhome, the number of sockets doesn't even matter because you will be using the helmet for your links. This thing is INSANE.
2. Tabula Rasa: The most well known leveling unique in the game, Tabula is a great "generic" item that provides extra damage or utility through extra links. It is advised to get an increased damage corruption for this body armour, though it is important to remember that mana cost may be an issue with 6L skills while leveling.
3. Ghostwrithe: This is a great item for builds transitioning into CI at some point or builds that want to use Energy Blade to level, otherwise, it is just a solid chest when you have nothing else.
4. Foxshade: This body armour can provide some solid stats and movement speed while leveling if you can stay at full life! Get yourself a % damage corruption and you have yourself another way to hurt and run!

Note: There are quite a few good corruptions for body armours, +! socketed being one often overlooked at low levels; however, it is often just best to take the increased damage corruption for that small boost while leveling.
​
Gloves: These options all provide an offensive bonus that will help speed up leveling!

1. Lochtonial Caress: These are a SIGNATURE for leveling form level 1 in any build, try getting a max rolled cast or attack speed for your build and they could last you to act 10 Kitava alone. There are other options to upgrade into after these gloves; however, these are the premium gloves to use when you first start out.
2. Hrimsorrow: These gloves are perfect for any player that wants to use a physical attack that then gets converted into cold. Otherwise they are just a lump of stats.
3. Sadima's Touch: The flat damage provided can be largely helpful early game and quant could always be fun to have but I would rate these poorly compared to other options.
4. Doedre's Tenure: The ULTIMATE spell leveling gloves. Fear not the reduced cast speed; by time you can use these, you can also toss on a pair with cast speed corruption to negate the downside. These gloves provide SO much extra damage while leveling a spell build and should ALWAYS be used on any build that wants to level with spells. Buy these with cast speed corruption and youll be blasting!
5. Flesh and Spirit: The rampage CAN be nice; though, it isn't often you are stopping to clear entire screens that these will see much use beyond Lightning arrow or other solid clearing skills that would allow you to actually get stacks easily.
6. Facebreakers: With the existence of Hollow Palm, these gloves have fallen behind. They CAN still be used but the other options are much better.
7. Ondar's Clasp: These gloves are hard to take advantage of until you can use arrogance to reserve some of your life, otherwise, I wouldn't suggest using them.

Note: The curses or speed corruptions can REALLY round out a pair of leveling gloves and should not be forgotten about if you can get a pair with it!
​
Boots: The options below are chosen to assist with the speed through the acts!

1. Seven-League Step: These are generally a bit pricey, especially early, but they are easily the BEST leveling boots in the game. When corrupted with increased movement speed, they turn you into a speeding bullet, but even without they are VERY strong.
2. Abberaths Hooves: A solid leveling alternative that gives good damage and a fun mechanic to mess with to kill monsters. The ignite prolif can add to the fun on ignite builds as well!
3. Wanderlust: The most budget option, these boots give freeze immunity which is awesome and solid movement speed to run through the acts!
4. Nomic's Storm: A cheap alternative to Seven-Leagues, these boots can provide a great movement speed buff with some stats; though, it is important to remember you will take a big first hit while wearing these!
5. Stormcharger: With a good roll on the movement speed, you can get yourself a really fast pair of boots that also scale shock very well for that extra damage!

Note: Always remember to look for cheap pairs with movement speed corruptions! These can really make leveling feel that much better!
​
Shields: Overlooked for higher damage option, shields are great for tankiness in the early levels.

1. Lycosidae: This shield is great for builds that use attacks but is often looked over because accuracy isn't much of an issue early. Using counter-attacks with this shield can be fun though!
2. Crest of Perandus: The life given by this shield can really pump up your early game tankiness and the extra stats are nice too. This shield is a comfy "I don't want to die" alternative.
3. Kaltenhalt: This shield is GREAT for any build that wants to level with a strong physical skill. The gained as can feel great for early game chills/freezes for additional "defense" as well.
4. Springleaf: Really only used for EARLY EARLY RF leveling, this shield is solid for adding some additonal regen to a build that doesn't die quick but doesn't heal quick either!

Note: Shields are often weak for leveling but it is important to realize they do exist! While it may be better to run a stronger weapon for damage, a shield can make leveling a bit more comfy and open doors for other options.
​
Jewellery: Jewellery has a large list of strong usable items. While there are technically some unique items that can have their level requirement removed via corruption, I will only list the unique items that I find to be genuinely beneficial to use.
Amulets: There is a large list of usable amulets, just remember to pick the one that best fits your build!

1. Sidhebreath: This amulet is very niche for minion builds and pretty much requires you run added cold with the minions to counter lack of other damage they can no longer deal. If you REALLY want to run this, you're going to notice a drop in damage as your minion gems level up.
2. Blood of Corruption: Really strong for early game levels but falls behind the Karui setup for benefits. Usable but not strong.
3. (Replica) Karui Ward: The BEST leveling amulet in the game. This amulet should be purchased with a movement speed corruption if possible to help BLAST through the game. The speed provided by this slot alone is huge and with the right annoint can turn you into a speed demon!
4. Tear of Purity: The extra resistances and ailment immunity provided by and early game Purity of Elements can feel great while leveling but otherwise isn't that strong.
5. Xoph's Heart: Now usable at level 5, this amulet and the ash covering ability really add some nice early game damage for leveling if you are using a fire build.
6. (Replica) Atziri's Foible: If built around, these amulets are easily some of the coolest. The bonuses they provide given the right build are astounding, otherwise its just a filler amulet.
7. Astramentis: INSANE for leveling because it cuts back your need for stats, Astramentis is always great to have around and can make for some easy gearing without worrying about stats.

Note: Make sure to annoint your amulet! While I always check for a movement speed corruption, the extra tainted oil can make the cost too high so going with an uncorrupted amulet might be the play!
​
Rings: The ring slot options are somehow large and small all at the same time.

1. Blackheart: The extra chaos damage added can really boost the early game clear, though the flee can be VERY annoying for melee builds.
2. Doedre's Damning: While additonal curse may seem strong, the lack of curses early makes this ring really just a ball of resistances.
3. Perandus Signet: My favorite ring to use as it gets me closer to using my full set at level 16, otherwise I run a few other options once I get there.
4. Berek's Rings: These rings are all solid for leveling assuming your build uses their bonuses correctly, read each of them to see what you might want to use!
5. Call of the Brotherhood: Great for those early game lightning builds (Spark is a favorite for me). Being able to do cold damage is huge for early game and can feel awesome for defense as well!
6. Le Heup of All: This ring is a generalist ring that fills the gap you may need for certain stats or resistances. It is always nice to keep a few on hand and use them when you are lacking somewhere!
7. Mark of Submission: This ring feels REALLY good early game to get extra damage from a curse and if it can be used, should be used! A early curse on hit can add a LOAD of extra damage, much more than most other rings this early into PoE.
8. Praxis: The reduced mana cost from this ring is a godsend and when used as a pair, your skill will often cost ZERO mana! Just remember, if you use inspiration, you want at least 1 cost for the mana!
9. Pyre: This ring is CRAZY for ignite builds and can even enable some cold ignite builds early game (just slao some elemental catalysts on it!) The bonus from destroying corpses is also very nice and can cutback on some on death stress effects that occur during the acts!
10. (Replica) Tasalio's Sign: This ring is GREAT for any build that can apply a chill! The huge added flat can really boost up your leveling speed while slowing down your enemies!

Note: Rings are pretty flexible and it is best to use a pair that best fits your build, though it doesn't hurt to run Perandus Signets until you can toss on two Le Heups!
​
Belt: Belts are a pretty large slot for unique items but like many other slots, there is generally one that is best. (Yes, MB is obviously the best belt BUT this writeup is moreso about uniques that people may not always think about and also ones below level 20, give or take a few items. Anyone WITH MB know they're going to use it and anyone without is either going to buy one or can't afford it)

1. Darkness Enthroned: This belt is the BEST if you are willing to hunt down good abyss jewels. The fact that you can gain loads of life, movement speed if you haven't been hit recently, and other benefits, really makes this belt take the number 1 spot for early into late leveling stages.
2. String of Servitude: This belt can have some solid mods; however, it's often lacking in areas that could make it feel good and unless you're going Hollow Palm, the belt is on the sidelines.
3. Meginord's Girdle: The added flat physical damage can be great for Pillar or Facebreaker builds; otherwise, this is just a filler belt with some stats.
4. Perandus Blazon: This belt is GREAT for the extra attributes and some quantity, though these stats are either made up elsewhere or generally useless for the acts!
5. Belt of the Deceiver: This belt can provide some additional damage to attack builds through intimidate as well as some resistances and life, it is still often better to run a Darkness Enthroned to make up for those potential missing stats.
6. Bated Breath: If you are looking to focus on an ES build or Energy Blade, this belt is just about the best you can go with until later in the game.
7. (Replica) Prismweave: This belt is INSANELY strong for the added flat it can provide to both attacks and spells and makes for a REALLY good leveling belt if you opt out of the huge added flat from a +9 Honourhome.

Note: While belts are often flexible, it is generally understood to just run with a Darkness Enthroned and search for level 1 jewels that fit your build. Remember that each abyss jewel has different rolls. (Ghastly: Minions, Searching: Bows/wands, Murderous: Melee/Attacks, Hypnotic: Spells)
​
Weapons: Weapons will be classified by their type, though some types may be more popular than others. When it comes to leveling with attacks, its often you will upgrade your weapon with something throughout the acts. Spells don't need much of an upgrade with some of the options below. I will not be listing weapon classes that have mediocre uniques, if a class isn't listed a cheap rare is best (Ex. Daggers have poor options and should instead be a rare if you want to use them.)
Axe: This weapon type is often overlooked for leveling but can be beneficial given some extra "tech".

1. Screaming Eagle: The movement speed provided makes this axe worth dual-wielding in your offhand to swap to for extra speed!
2. Limbsplit: While the culling strike isn't neccessary for early-game, having a way to cull early on weapon swap can cut some seconds off of killing some tanky rares! (I am looking at you spinning birdcage skeletons with extra life!)

Notes: Axes are often just kept on weapon swap for their bonus, if you want to use an axe for damage, an axe purchased from a vendor, qualitied, and essenced often do far more damage.
​
Bows: Bows are something I really enjoy leveling with and the options are quite large, below are the some solid choices if you don't want to craft a rare every 5-10 levels!

1. Silverbranch: This bow is a generic leveling bow that when found early can really assist with early game bow clear.
2. Widowhail: With the right quiver, this bow is INSANE! It does require further planning but given the right setup, this bow can be used from level 1 to level 100, even being something to build around! If you want to go with stat stacking, remember that 249% is only 2x effect while 250% is 3x effect, so buy a max roll!
3. Quillrain: The classic leveling bow that can be used from 5 to 100, the speed and mana gained on hit make this bow feel nice and comfy for leveling, though the damage reduction is a bit noticable.
4. Storm Cloud: This bow does so much for an early game build and should not be forgotten. While the attack speed is much lower than Quill Rain, it does feel very nice to use with LA and other bow skills early.

Note: Bows can be bought with corruptions but it is often easier to just buy high rolls, but never overlook a high roll AND corruption that still retains the low level requirement.
​
Quivers: Using the right quiver can really change the bow leveling experience, though a crafted rare often does the trick too!

1. Hyrri's Bite: Insane for leveling, this quiver is VERY good with the extra stats it provides, it will really change how your gems level early game!

Note: Quivers are often better if just cheaply essence crafted, otherwise, Hyrri's Bite is the strong go-to quiver.
​
Maces: While the choices are small, it is fun to run a mace with slams early!

1. Gorebreaker: The damage done by this mace early game is enough to kill most rares in a hit or two; however, it falls off quickly given the slow attack speed.

Note: There are technically more options in the 20s range; though, they are often overshadowed in damage from a crafted rare.
​
Sceptres: This is where the fun weapons begin!

1. Axiom Perpetuum: This is by far the BEST spell caster leveling unique in the entire game. When combined with other unique items in this list (often the ones I bold), the damage provided is MASSIVE. This is brought up even HIGHER with a cast speed corruption. This sceptre is the BEST spell caster leveling weapon in the entire game and should ALWAYS be kept in pairs of two with cast speed corruptions. The Crit and Cast speed alone turn a boring spell into a KILLING machine.
2. Brutus Lead Sprinkler: I know this is level 28 but it holds a strong place in my heart. This is one of my favorite items in PoE (I WISH I could get one with a great crucible tree for standard but I don't have the desire to make one right now, maybe later, I REALLY want one!) It is VERY fun to level with for Str stacking and should be remembered if you are looking to try a stat stacking build early.

Note: There really isn't a better caster weapon than Axiom for leveling and really limits the unique items worth using for said builds.
​
Staves: An uncommon leveling piece, staves can see some use but are often outclassed by Axiom or other items:

1. Fencoil: Great for early damage until you get two axioms but not needed when you can use +1 All X Spell gem magic wands instead.
2. Replica Bloodthorn: The increased fire damage can feel great for early game Rolling Magma until Axioms; however, it is useless afterwards.
3. Pillar of the Caged God: This is often used at much higher levels after stats are scaled better but can be used early if you can find some good added flat physical damage and strength while leveling.

Note: It is generally much better to use +1 wands but staves can still make for an easy to store unique weapon to hold until you can use Axioms.
​
Swords: The choice of swords for leveling is pretty open with one clear winner; though, it is often better to use a crafted rare if you want to level with them.

1. Oni-Goroshi: This sword has so much lore behind it and is very strong to level with. While farming it may not be fun and making sure you get enough ignite chance to trigger the proc may not be fun, it can scale all the way to level 100 if built around and is very solid for leveling with melee weapons.
2. Redbeak: This is often dropped for a rare the moment you can hit a Thrusting sword with an essence or two, this sword is still strong for early levels if given the chance!
3. The Princess: I really enjoy dual wielding this sword with another copy when using a physical build, it is still often better to use Axiom or a crafted rare.
4. Shiversting: When it comes to two hander swords, Shiversting takes the cake for early game damage. Sady it is still outclassed by a crafted rare if you have the essences, otherwise, it can clear early levels easily until you can upgrade.

Note: Like other melee weapons, swords are often better crafted ever 5-10 levels, unless you use Oni.
​
Claws: Claws really only have one option for leveling and it always requires Elemental hit to work.
(Replica) Last Resort: This claw is VERY good when leveling with elemental hit once you can get to low life; however, it is otherwise useless.
Note: If you want claws, use a rare, its really that simple.
​
Wands: While outclassed by Axiom, wands can be used early for an extra damage boots until you can use those sceptres.

1. Lifesprig: A solid wand to use until you can use Axioms, the life it heals is nice for early sustain.
2. Abberaths Horn: This wand is useable if you cannot get +1 wands early, is should be dropped as soon as possible. While ignite isn't insanely strong early, the reduced ignite duration can be noticed when it comes to additional damage from fire builds.
3. Ashcaller: This wand is really strong with SRS from the covered in ash debuff, it is otherwise not that usable.
4. Poet's Pen: This wand, while not as popular, is a cult classic for leveling. Throw on two with your favorite spells (and make sure to use clarity to counter to trigger costs!) and you can BLAZE through the game using frenzy as your trigger. Poet's Pen builds do require some planning but can be VERY fun for early game.

Note: It is often better to use a magic +1 to all X spell set for leveling. Aside from Poet's Pen, the benefit of using the above wands is worse than a simple +1 wand.
​
Jewels: The number of leveling jewels has dropped drastically after the jewel change but here is a short list of some!

1. One with Nothing: Your typical "leveling" jewel. This build has been tried and true for years and is always something to look into if you want the generic Hollow Palm leveling experience.
2. Thread of Hope: A late game found jewel that can be used in early leveling to get some extra passives early in the game (Think about getting two extra projectiles for a bow build early instead of pathing all the way to those nodes).
3. Watcher's Eye: Another late game found jewel that can add some convivence to an early leveling experience but needs to be built around.
4. Sublime Vision: The final of my suggest jewels, using the haste version of this can add some extra speed to an otherwise speedy leveling experience!

​
When deciding your build, the most important part is deciding the "prime unique" to build around, when it comes to spells, make sure you can buy the perfect +4 Honourhome helmet and then go from there, a perfect Honourhome is the difference between 6k DPS at level 16 and 800 dps. Build around this helmet and you'll LOVE the spell caster leveling experience, I PROMISE!
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Build Template(s): I will add more templates if this thread gets some views but otherwise here is my generic "Spark leveling template" that I used. The damage is VERY high for a level 16 and I have personally leveled a character all the way to act 10 with this gear setup without using a SINGLE passive point. (Though I did need to swap in Astramentis and swap rings to make up for lost resistances and stats to level up skill gems.) None of these builds have passive points in, just gear.
Spark: https://pobb.in/7ikhk0q3MVNU
Lightning Arrow: https://pobb.in/hDzo2YyYcOp-
Generic Spell Level 2 Build: https://pobb.in/prpMjcZLrdLG
Freezing Pulse: https://pobb.in/yQc_4q20wMQQ
Ignite Ice Shot with Pyre: https://pobb.in/aqUBF7Vk-OKk
Molten Strike (Cheaply crafted swords): https://pobb.in/B45bzsd9DWF5
​
If you have any questions feel free to ask! I can also make a video guide that is a bit more fleshed out so let me know if you like it!

Looking for the best motherboard to pair with the 7800x3d.
Was looking @ the gigabyte x670 aorus elite for $279-
Some reviews say its great some dont and I dont like the idea of the cheap realtek audio driver it has
I used to have ASUS boards in my last 3 builds but some recent videos show theyve been overvolting the chip and melting it… im reluctant to go Asus again for this reason even though historically I’ve had no issues using their products. Im not sure if its just the mega high end x series boards either.
My budget is probably $350.
Was looking into the msi x670e carbon(slightly out of budget but will pay if its worth it), the asrock x670 steel legend, or go baxk to asus x670e prime or the tuf x670.
I game in 1080p 2 monitors, stream, etc. video card is a 2070 super but upgrading to either a rx 6950xtx or the 7900xtx.
Im so confused on which motherboard to go with, id like it to have 2 m.2 slots though, so I can boot off one and store the majority of my games on the other.
Also need it to be capable of running 64gb of DDR5 @ 6000mhz (OC)
Some boards I see dont have that capability supposedly according to the microcenter specs
Any help is much appreciated thank you
Edited: x670**** sorry

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My wife and I took a trip to Portugal early December of 2022, and we had a really solid time. The food experiences were amazing and getting to take in so much old-world architecture was awe-inspiring.
Focus: Our main focus was lazy tourism and fine dining between Porto and Lisbon. We ended the trip with a 9 hour layover in Toronto, which we used to visit friends and some of our favorite Toronto spots.
Weather: The week was mostly sunny with some rain interspersed, and average temperatures seeming to be mid-teens. Toronto at the time was cold and snow-covered.
Accomodations: We ended up doing hotels as they were rather cheap.
Some photos below, along with some detailed notes of the packing list. Photos may be missing some things due to last minute substitutions, tried to note that.
Bag of choice:

• Peak Design 30L Travel Bag - This thing felt like a black hole, and seemed to hold more than the size would indicate. This is heads above my old Bellroy Transit and I'm happy I made the switch.

Worn clothing:

• Ministry of Supply Atlas Sweater - Not pictured, pictured is a Heattech Ultrawarm sweater I didn't take. Merino blend, soft, warm. All I could ask for. I surprisingly didn't use it much more than just the flight there, but I'm happy I had it on me.
• Ministry of Supply Composite Merino tee - The cut fits me well, anti-wrinkle, and surprising resistance to smells even with only being 15% merino. I got a good 2-3 wears out of this.
• Saxx Quest 2.0 Boxer Briefs - GOAT for travel, these things wear well, hand wash well, and dry overnight.
• Smartwool full cushion crew socks - Merino socks! They were warm and wore well! Smartwool tends to be realtively affordable when on sale, and they've held up very well.
• Lululemon ABC pants skinny - Warpstreme fabric is lovely and in black looks like a pretty standard pair of pants. This is actually the only pants I wore the whole trip.
• Pontos The Pacific shoe - These have been awesome. Very comfortable to walk in, and they dress up or down really nicely. These did cobblestone, grass, rocks, sand, snow, rain, etc, and they looked great doing it. I found I needed to pull the insoles end of the day, but by morning they were dry and fresh again.
• Arcade Midnighter belt - Not pictured. Stretchy black belt!

Packed clothing:

• Seagale Action Merino Tee (2) - black tees, easy care, love the fit. They hand wash really well if necessary, but I got 3 wears out of these easily. Having this tee on for the 24+ hours of travel on the leg home was a godsend, great moisture management and incredibly soft.
• Ministry of Supply Composite Merino tee - Grey. The cut fits me well, anti-wrinkle, and surprising resistance to smells even with only being 15% merino. I got a good 2-3 wears out of this.
• Ministry of Supply Apollo Raglan Sleeve Sport Shirt - Basically a button down. This thing fits awesome and doesn’t wrinkle. Standard sleeves would be better but this dresses up well enough - I wore this out to 6 different restaurants in Portugal, and even gave it a whole day as a layer over a tee, and it was very comfortable and performant. No need to wash between wears with a tee under it.
• Ministry of Supply Pace Chinos - I didn't actually wear these, the ABCs were plenty enough for the trip.
• Lululemon T.H.E. Shorts 7” - We didn’t have access to any pools or spas while there, so these were dead weight. Considering they weigh almost nothing though, not a big loss.
  
• Saxx Quest 2.0 Boxer Briefs (3) - 1 black, 2 grey. I’ve had these for a while and they’re probably still my favorite style from Saxx. They hand wash and dry well, and they’re comfortable. All I can ask for. I washed each pair once over the trip, and they dried overnight.
  
• Uniqlo Airism Boxers (2) - Sleep shorts. Hand washed once each, and they dried overnight.
  
• Smartwool Full Cushion Crew Socks (2) - Merino socks! What’s more to say. Smartwool is affordable while on sale and has some great durability. I’ve been happy with my pairs so far. I washed each pair once over the trip, and they really just needed a one day dry. I think the number of socks packed was pretty ideal.
  
• Smartwool No Show Socks - I didn’t need or use these, but having the emergency socks was a nice include. They’re small and didn’t really add any weight.
  

Outer Layers:

• Patagonia Nano Puff Jacket - Wind proof, water resistant, very insulating. Packs down rather small. I’ve moved to synthetic insulation as it keeps warm when wet unlike down jackets. This held up well to a bit of rain while we were there and kept me warm enough most days.
• Patagonia Torrentshell 3L - Water proof. Wind proof. A bit crinkly, and didn’t really get a lot of use in Portugal due to the lack of heavy rain. Also being waterproof it tends to keep heat in just as well as it keeps water out, so combined with the nano puff it offered pretty good insulation for Toronto.
• Smartwool Glove Liners - Just some basic gloves. They work with touch screens, that’s cool I guess! Solid for Toronto.
• Merino Buff - Part neck gaiter, part sleep mask for the flight. It was awesome to have. On tour buses with an open roof it was very nice to have a bit of insulation I could throw into a sling.

Electronics:

• Tom Bihn Ghost Whale Small - This contains my charging and camera connectivity kit, and it’s a tight squeeze but everything fits.
• Mophie 6000mah universal PD battery - Not the smallest or lightest battery, but it supports lightning input, and also does passthrough charging, which makes it the centerpiece for my tiny charging empire.
• Apple SD card readers - These just work, and they work well. Both Lightning and USB-C. Once the iPhone goes to USB-C I can drop the Lightning one. Let’s me ingest RAW files onto any of my devices. I didn’t need the Lightning one, but it’s just a standard in the bag now, so along it came.
• Anker Powerport III Nano 30W - Super slim, 30w charging. It’s been a standard for me for a while.
• Anker Cables - 3ft USB-C to Lightning and 3ft USB-C to USB-C. Covers all my device charging needs.
• Fujifilm X100V - Killer camera, compact, fun to shoot with.
• Tom Bihn Utility Cloth - It’s a wool square! It’s moonlighting as a camera wrap here, but it can be anything! Neck gaiter? Check. Very small blanket? Check. Table cloth? You bet. The options are limitless for the wool square! This was actually an MVP - The tiny blanket feature came in handy on tour buses, and it worked great for wiping down wet seats on a boat tour.
• Keys - Featuring an Airtag, and the final member of the charging gang, an InchargeX. I’ve also got a Nite Ize Doohickey on there for bottles and boxes. The Doohickey is awesome as it passes through airport security without issues and does a good enough job of what it’s designed to do.
• Airpods Pro - Basically perfect headphones for short stints. Reasonable battery life, great noise cancelling, agreeable sound quality. Overall solid.
• Destination Specific adapters (2) - Two is one and one is none, or something like that.
• iPad Mini 6 - Used for editing photos, reading on the plane, larger view for maps, etc.
• iPhone 12 - Works well with everything else I own. I grabbed an eSIM from Airalo on MEO, giving me 30gb of data for 15 days.
• Sony WH-1000XM4 - Not pictured. These were great for the 6-8 hour transatlantic flights. A last minute pick but I’m glad they made it into the bag.

A quick note on my charging setup: The whole setup for charging with my InchargeX allows me to charge two devices overnight AND my battery off a single 30w slim wall adapter. This is about as close as I can get to a perfect tiny charging setup. The iPhone plus the battery is plenty enough to get me through even the heaviest of days, into a second day.
Toiletries:

• Exfoliating cloth - Nylon textured cloth that’s basically an unravelled loofah. So easy to get a lather and you feel a lot cleaner after a good exfoliating scrub. I use one of these at home now too. I’d like to find a face cloth sized one for travel.
• Unscented Company Shampoo bar and soap bar - Stored in Matador soap cases. These lather really well, clean great, and support my “all solids” agenda for travel. They work great for cleaning clothes too. I’ve been using these at home instead of liquids, and can’t complain. We were never without toiletries due to the hotels, but I prefer these.
• Philips One Toothbrush - Next time I’d probably just get a cover for the head as I think the case was a bit large. I liked having the electric function though.
• Various OTC meds - Stored in Nalgene containers, these little things are waterproof and well built.
• Lush Dirty Toothy Tabs - Toothpaste replacement and my go-to for a while. Enough for both myself and my wife.
• Hair Bands - Two is one and one is none, or something like that.
• Xiaomi Mijia S100 shaver - New to me, picked it over a Philips OneBlade. Dual rotary shaver, compact, USB-C charging. I don’t get a lot of facial hair growth but I get enough that I like touching up every couple days. This did the trick. Might try to go back to a manual razor like a mach 3.
• Native Deodorant - Been my go-to for a while. I can’t seem to find a travel size in Canada, but this would be a huge space saver if I could. I may consider melting it down and re-packing it as some enterprising individuals on the internet have before me.
• Folding brush - I’ve had this for ages, and it’s been awesome.

Everything else:

• Bellroy Lite Sling - Very flexible in load out, the 7L size made for a very good holding capacity to size ratio. This functioned as my camera bag and held essentials when transiting through airports or while on trains.
• Tom Bihn Ghost Whale Super Mini - Bag of holding for…
• Ray-Ban Folding Wayfarers - Matte black, high quality, compact. Non-polarized. Perfect fit in the ghost whale and always with me for sunny days. These were great for the trip as we had a lot of sunny days.
• Apple Magsafe Wallet - Not much to say here, standard 3 card carry - ID, debit card, credit card.
• Vapur Eclipse bottle - Didn’t actually use this, but fit in one of the mesh side pouches in my Peak Design bag handily.
• PackTowl Large - Came in handy when we were short a few towels in the hotel the first day in Porto.
• KN95 Masks (3) - Black, used on the airplanes. We didn’t get sick on the trip!
• Matador Packable Tote - Was useful for day excursions, shopping, etc. 18L packs down into a very compact size and it’s a robust bag.
• Passport - Well this is kinda needed for international travel. I also had my Presto (Toronto transit payment card) and alternate credit card in here as a just in case.

What Worked: Overall I think my packing list is cohesive enough and walked the line between casual and nice enough for a good restaurant. I've been working with a lot of this clothing for a while so it's been tested heavily through the rigors of daily wear, and I was very confident in my choices going in. The massive standout was the wool utility cloth - I think more people need these!
What could have been improved: I overpacked on a few things like pants and shorts, which really are just small things. The Pontos were awesome for the trip, but I feel like I would have done better with a pair of Blundstones or a similar Chelsea style boot. I also wish I could find a more casual looking "technical" jacket for daily wear, but the options are limited from what I can find. I think I could have dropped the iPad too, although it didn't take up a whole lot of space and was great for editing photos in downtime or reading on the plane. The Mijia shaver was okay but not amazing.