1080 river oaks drive

I have a week off in April and I really want to go somewhere beautiful in China, since I will likely be leaving in autumn and I want to make the most of my time here before I go. I’m so torn whether to go to Guilin and Yangshuo, or travel around Yunnan (eg Kunming, Xishuangbanna). I love beautiful natural scenery such as flowers rivers and mountains, I enjoy warm hot or sunny weather, I also love tea and desserts, and dressing up to take photos. My Chinese is not great but enough to communicate, I’ll be travelling solo so this may be relevant to which place is more suitable. I can’t drive but I enjoy walking.
Any advice which I should go for?

Build Help:

Have you read the sidebar and rules?
Yes
What is your intended use for this build? The more details the better.
Software Development, Lightroom and Games. Currently got a i7 6700k with 32gb of RAM. On the software side, I work for a company, use my own gear, but they're financing part of this build. Building various flask microservices with docker and kubernates. The current dev set-up isnt particularly fantastic and what happens is I need to run a number of them locally which is going to put my little skylake processor into an early grave. For lightroom I have big photo files. And similarly have encountered similar issues around feeling bottlenecked loading up various large libraries. Partially an issue due to files being shuffled between the HDD and SSD. Larger SSD to address that, along with a more recent processor and more memory which I'm sure will help.
I'm keeping a couple of parts from my previous build: Power supply, CPU Cooler, GPU, HDD, 500gb SSDs.
Should note the 64GB of memory is overkill, but it was the same price as a 2x24 set and I impulsively bought it, but it is a worthy sacrifice to the FUTUREPROOFING gods.
If gaming, what kind of performance are you looking for? (Screen resolution, framerate, game settings)
2 165hz 1440p monitors. Medium-low 165fps.
What is your budget (ballpark is okay)?
2400$AUD
In what country are you purchasing your parts?
Australia
Post a draft of your potential build here
PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	Intel Core i7-13700KF 3.4 GHz 16-Core Processor	$569.00
CPU Cooler	NZXT Kraken X61 106.1 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler	-
Motherboard	MSI PRO Z790-A WIFI ATX LGA1700 Motherboard	$429.00 @ Computer Alliance
Memory	Corsair Vengeance 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-5600 CL40 Memory	$341.76 @ Amazon Australia
Storage	Samsung 850 Evo 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive	Purchased For $0.00
Storage	Samsung 980 Pro 500 GB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive	Purchased For $0.00
Storage	Western Digital Black SN850X 4 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive	$635.00
Storage	Seagate BarraCuda 2 TB 3.5" 7200 RPM Internal Hard Drive	Purchased For $0.00
Video Card	MSI GAMING X GeForce GTX 1080 8 GB Video Card	Purchased For $0.00
Case	Fractal Design Define R5 ATX Mid Tower Case	$189.00 @ Scorptec
Power Supply	Corsair HX1000i 1000 W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply	Purchased For $0.00
Case Fan	Noctua A14 PWM 82.5 CFM 140 mm Fan	$43.04 @ JW Computers
Case Fan	Noctua A14 PWM 82.5 CFM 140 mm Fan	$43.04 @ JW Computers
Case Fan	Noctua A14 PWM 82.5 CFM 140 mm Fan	$43.04 @ JW Computers
Custom	NZXT LGA1700 Bracket Kit – For Kraken X	$9.00
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$2301.88
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-03-29 14:55 AEDT+1100

Provide any additional details you wish below.
What I would like to know is for the case I have a Phanteks Enthoo Luxe (~2016) and a 280mm Kraken x61. I have grown to dislike the full tower form factor, as it takes up so much space on the desktop. But What I would like a second opinion on the cooling situation. Want to mount the radiator at the top of the case. In the literature, Fractal says that "a thickness limitation of 55 mm for both radiator + fan applies on 420, 280 and 140 mm radiators". According to my calculations, the radiator (27mm) and fan (25mm) are less than the specified diameter. But would like a confirmation that I'm not missing a trick.
Open to case suggestions, preferable mid tower without windows, lots of front IO. 5.25" Bays not required, but NTH. As small as possible, but will need to fit all the HDDs, GPU, Power etc, not expecting some reconfig to a mITX build, just if theres a smaller mid tower case I hadnt considered. Also added a bunch of Noctua case fans, I do need to replace my radiator fans and exhaust fan.

I have a roommate moving out at the end of this month to return to college, and I am looking for someone to move in once they move out.
My apartment is near the intersection of Austin Blvd. and Iowa St. in Oak Park. It is a 2 bed/1 bath that is 1000 sq ft. It is already furnished with my furniture (minus your bedroom), but I would be open to selling mine and/or incorporating yours if you would like that. There is gas heating and a gas stove/oven (the gas heating, water, and waste are included in the rent price/covered by the apartment company). Electric, cooking gas, and internet are the only monthly utility charges outside of rent. There is no central air as this is a more historic building. There is no washedrier in-unit, but there is a very close laundromat. There is a dishwasher, fridge, and microwave already here along with a sizable pantry. This unit is also pet-friendly.
For public transportation there is a bus stop right outside near the front of the apartment building, the Green line is less than 3/4 miles away, and the Blue line is less than 2 miles away. The bus route will take you to both. If you drive, there is on-street parking available and an off-street 24/7 lot available as well. Downtown Chicago is around an 8-mile drive away and is easy/quick to get to in the morning.
About Me: I’m a lower 20’s male, a recent college grad, I work in biological research downtown, I enjoy running, long-distance cycling, reading, video and board games, puzzles, animals, and being outdoors. I have a friendly and skittish cat named Tangerine, and I am welcoming to other cats and small dogs. I am an initially shy but very friendly person. I spend a lot of my time helping people out in the area by doing odd jobs and landscaping or home maintenance/improvement projects as well.
I don’t have a preference for male or female roommates (both of my previous roommates were female). Youngecollege-graduated would be more ideal, but I don’t really care as long as we get along and work together for a good living environment. I like to keep the main living areas somewhat clean, and I’m hoping you’d want the same. I am also open to short-term rentals if that is what you want/need.
If this interests you at all, please reach out to me. We can get in contact, I can send you pictures and videos of the apartment, and I can have you come over for a quick apartment tour so you can see what it looks like in person. I look forward to hearing from you! Thank you!

Hey folks!
I'm considering spoiling myself with a new component; currently looking at the 3060/3060 Ti. Been rolling with the build below for a few years and I'm wondering if there's another area that might be wiser to upgrade first. I've got plenty of wiggle room with my power draw vs. supply. From what I've read the 1080p monitor might not be ideal for the visual output the 3060 can produce.
​
GPU - ASUS GeForce GTX 1070 8GB GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0
Motherboard - MSI MEG X570 UNIFY AM4 AMD X570 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD
CPU - AMD Ryzen 9 3rd Gen - RYZEN 9 3900X Matisse (Zen 2) 12-Core 3.8 GHz (4.6 GHz Max Boost) Socket AM4 105W
RAM [I've got 4 sticks total] - G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 288-Pin PC RAM DDR4 3600 (PC4 28800)
PSU - CORSAIR RMx White Series RM750x White 750W 80 PLUS Gold Certified
Cooler - Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo CPU Cooler, 4 CDC Heatpipes, 120mm PWM Fan, Aluminum Fins for AMD Ryzen/Intel
SSD - SAMSUNG 970 EVO M.2 2280 500GB PCIe Gen3. X4, NVMe 1.3 V-NAND 3-bit MLC
HDD - WD Black 2TB Performance Desktop Hard Disk Drive - 7200 RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache 3.5 Inch
Display - Acer Nitro VG270 Pbiip 27" Full HD 1920 x 1080 1ms (VRB) 144Hz 2xHDMI DisplayPort AMD FreeSync Backlit LED IPS Gaming Monitor

Predict, Discuss and Follow the Weekend's Events

Use these discussion threads to talk about matchups, share predictions, find stream info, react to results and more. You can also chat live in our discord channel. Feel free to discuss any event, not just the featured events!

Easterns

April 1-2 in partly cloudy Little River, SC
Livestreaming Schedule

Date	Local Time	UTC Time	Div	Matchup	Watch

Easterns is US Eastern time. Viewing requires a Full ($12.99/mo) or Plus ($19.99/mo) subscription. Games WILL have commentary. Schedule subject to change but won't be updated here. If the links don't work, try here.
Men's Pools – Schedule and Results

Pool A	Pool B	Pool C	Pool D
#1 Massachusetts	#2 North Carolina	#4 Vermont	#7 Oregon
#12 Pittsburgh	#11 Minnesota	#8 Cal Poly-SLO	#13 Carleton
#24 NC State	#18 Northeastern	#15 Tufts	#14 Brown
#21 California	#20 Ohio State	#22 Georgia	#17 Michigan
Auburn	UNC-Wilmington	Wisconsin	#25 South Carolina

Follow: Easterns Facebook, @Ultiworld, @UltiworldLive

Northwest Challenge

April 1-2 in rainy Seattle, WA
Men's Pools – Schedule and Results

Pool A	Pool B	Pool C	Pool D
#19 British Columbia	#16 Washington	Utah State	#23 Oregon State
#12 D-III Whitman	Utah	Western Washington	Victoria
Dartmouth	Washington State	Gonzaga	Chico State

Women's Division – Schedule and Results
The main women's division was last weekend, however, it looks like there will be at least one game between Portland and Whitman this weekend, as part of the Tier 2 division. Not sure if more teams are still to be added to the schedule.
Follow: @DiscNW, @Ultiworld, @UltiworldLive

Huck Finn

April 1-2 in partly cloudy O'Fallon, IL (near St Louis)
Men's Pools – Schedule and Results

Pool A (Tier 1)	Pool B (Tier 1)	Pool C (Tier 2)	Pool D (Tier 2)	Pool E (Tier 3)	Pool F (Tier 3)
Washington-St Louis	Iowa State	Wisconsin-Milwaukee	#10 D-III St Olaf	St Louis	Marquette
Emory	Missouri	#6 D-III Grinnell	Illinois	Boston University	Georgia State
Cincinnati	Purdue	Chicago	Kentucky	Arizona State	Illinois State
Notre Dame	Alabama	Florida State	#9 D-III Missouri S&T	DePaul	Central Michigan
Vanderbilt	Indiana	#8 D-III John Brown	Michigan State

All teams can reach the championship bracket, but more spots are allocated to teams in higher tiers.
Follow: Tournament Site, @HuckFinnTDs, @Ultiworld, @UltiworldLive

East Coast Scrimmage Weekend

April 1 in rainy Ardmore, PA (near Philadelphia)
Women's Pool – Schedule and Results

Pool A
#1 North Carolina
#2 Vermont
#5 Tufts
#15 Yale

Follow: @UNC_Pleiades, @AFDCJuniors, @Ultiworld, @UltiworldLive

B-Team Brodown

April 1-2 in partly cloudy Pittsburgh, PA
Men's Pools – Schedule and Results

Pool A	Pool B	Pool C	Pool D
Pittsburgh-B	Penn State-B	#21 D-III Franciscan	#23 D-IIII Messiah
Ohio	Lehigh-B	Michigan-B	Ohio State-B
#18 D-III Rochester	Carnegie Mellon-B	Shippensburg	Case Western-B
SUNY-Fredonia	Ave Maria	Dayton-B	SUNY-Buffalo-B

Follow: @PghUltimate, @PittUltimateM_B, @Ultiworld, @UltiworldLive

Atlantic Coast Open

April 1-2 in partly cloudy Axton, VA
Women's Pools – Schedule and Results

Pool A
Cornell
Liberty
George Washington
George Mason
Cornell-B

Men's Pools – Schedule and Results

Pool A	Pool B	Pool C	Pool D	Dev Round Robin
Penn State	Duke	Rutgers	Cornell	Maryland-B
#3 D-III Richmond	Virginia Tech	Lehigh	Georgetown	South Carolina-B
#5 D-III Navy	Temple	Connecticut	Liberty	Virginia Tech-B
Johns Hopkins	MIT	VCU	East Carolina	Cornell-B
George Mason	American	Charlotte YCC		Georgetown-B
				George Washington-B
				American-B

Follow: Tournament Site, @OakCreekUlti, @Ultiworld, @UltiworldLive
Top 25 Rankings from Ultiworld Top 25, but not yet updated for this week.

I was wondering if my build if a good build. I plan on playing 1080 on games such as Valorant, Overwatch, Destiny 2 and so on. I‘m not that much knowing on pc builds so I don’t know if this is able to do that.
PCPartPicker Part List: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/L6mmwc
CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 5600 3.5 GHz 6-Core Processor ($139.79 @ B&H) Motherboard: MSI B550-A PRO ATX AM4 Motherboard ($139.99 @ Amazon) Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory ($42.99 @ Amazon) Storage: Western Digital Blue SN570 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 3.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($52.99 @ Amazon) Video Card: XFX Speedster SWFT 210 Radeon RX 6600 8 GB Video Card ($249.99 @ Amazon) Case: Phanteks Eclipse P300A Mesh ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Newegg) Power Supply: EVGA 600 BR 600 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Walmart) Total: $755.73

CAREER EMPLOYEES! Tired of seeing all these jobs go to the street? Your chance to join the gravy train ranks is almost gone! Apply yourself, you can do it! MSS Coordinator varies by District.
New record on MM-7 mechanic jobs. USPS really out to fuck the people that are already career, they're not even trying to hide it. Also, I forgot how to count. Moved ahead a month oops - take two!
​
Good afternoon. Brief listing of CAREER JOBS pulled from usps.com/careers/ for your convenience.
Some jobs may be part-time regular however all listed jobs should qualify for federal benefits from day one. To save text I have only listed the location and date of posting for each. Use the posting number for your search term. LC and MM are entry-level Maintenance. Here is a testimonial from a recent convert, prima1981.
​
NOTE: USPS NEVER charges a fee for entrance exams. If payment is requested during the application process, walk the fuck away, go to usps.com/careers/ and APPLY THERE. We even has a video walkthrough prepared.
​
Laborer Custodial:
CANAL WINCHESTER OH NC11298992 03/23/2023
GRANVILLE OH NC11298999 03/23/2023
CHARLEVOIX MI NC11297550 03/22/2023
SAN FRANCISCO CA NC11272282 03/16/2023
REDMOND WA NC11290022 03/15/2023
KETCHUM ID NC11302140 03/25/2023
WHITE PLAINS NY NC11301053 03/25/2023
BRATTLEBORO VT NC11300914 03/25/2023
DICKINSON ND NC11300841 03/24/2023
BISMARCK ND NC11300837 03/24/2023
BISMARCK ND NC11300831 03/24/2023
CROOKSTON MN NC11300673 03/24/2023
WHITE RIVER JUNCTION VT NC11300224 03/24/2023
FENTON MO NC11299177 03/24/2023
BOSTON MA NC11299139 03/24/2023
PENDLETON OR NC11299123 03/24/2023
GRAY GA NC11297961 03/23/2023
LAGRANGE GA NC11297953 03/23/2023
JESUP GA NC11297950 03/23/2023
KINGSLAND GA NC11297774 03/23/2023
NORTH READING MA NC11297767 03/23/2023
HICKORY NC NC11297724 03/23/2023
PETALUMA CA NC11296097 03/22/2023
SAN FRANCISCO CA NC11285816 03/20/2023
LEESBURG VA NC11294817 03/19/2023
TRAVERSE CITY MI NC11293101 03/18/2023
WHITE PLAINS NY NC11301206 03/25/2023
​
Maintenance Mechanic:
SHREWSBURY MA NC11299180 03/24/2023
SAN JOSE CA NC11289187 03/21/2023
SAINT PAUL MN NC11299102 03/23/2023
SAINT PAUL MN NC11298964 03/23/2023
RICHMOND CA NC11302501 03/25/2023
PHOENIX AZ NC11294808 03/20/2023
PHILADELPHIA PA NC11302228 03/25/2023
OAKLAND CA NC11299110 03/23/2023
MERRIFIELD VA NC11294815 03/19/2023
MEMPHIS TN NC11297952 03/23/2023
LOUISVILLE KY NC11288732 03/20/2023
JAMAICA NY NC11288847 03/25/2023
HARTFORD CT NC11300915 03/25/2023
WHITE PLAINS NY NC11301200 03/25/2023
RICHMOND CA NC11302407 03/25/2023
MEMPHIS TN NC11293083 03/18/2023
MELVILLE NY NC11288826 03/25/2023
LOUISVILLE KY NC11288711 03/20/2023
CHICAGO IL NC11292143 03/17/2023
AUGUSTA GA NC11292936 03/17/2023
PHILADELPHIA PA NC11302333 03/25/2023
PETALUMA CA NC11289177 03/21/2023
LOUISVILLE KY NC11288728 03/20/2023
CAROL STREAM IL NC11292109 03/17/2023
HISTORIC NEW CASTLE DE NC11299043 03/26/2023
WHITE PLAINS NY NC11301213 03/25/2023
WHITE PLAINS NY NC11301150 03/25/2023
RICHMOND CA NC11299029 03/23/2023
PHILADELPHIA PA NC11302325 03/25/2023
MACON GA NC11292871 03/17/2023
LOUISVILLE KY NC11301171 03/25/2023
LOUISVILLE KY NC11301158 03/25/2023
KEARNY NJ NC11296167 03/27/2023
DES MOINES IA NC11302145 03/25/2023
DALLAS TX NC11299590 03/24/2023
COPPELL TX NC11299592 03/24/2023
BELL GARDENS CA NC11287325 03/21/2023
FARMINGTON NM NC11294794 03/20/2023
​
Special! Interesting Maintenance Jobs: (may be skills required)
​
Maintenance Mechanic MPE:
CAPITOL HEIGHTS MD NC11297600 03/23/2023
MELVILLE NY NC11288829 03/25/2023
FARGO ND NC11302226 03/25/2023
DULLES VA NC11294816 03/19/2023
WEST FARGO ND NC11302193 03/25/2023
WAITE PARK MN NC11304276 03/26/2023
PHILADELPHIA PA NC11302284 03/25/2023
FARGO ND NC11302190 03/25/2023
BOSTON MA NC11296309 03/22/2023
PETALUMA CA NC11289175 03/21/2023
PORTLAND OR NC11301307 03/25/2023
NORTH READING MA NC11297723 03/23/2023
MINNEAPOLIS MN NC11302329 03/25/2023
MEMPHIS TN NC11293003 03/18/2023
LOUISVILLE KY NC11301303 03/25/2023
LOUISVILLE KY NC11288712 03/20/2023
DALLAS TX NC11299578 03/24/2023
​
Building Equipment Mechanic:
HEIGHTS MD NC11290064 03/16/2023
MINNEAPOLIS MN NC11302244 03/25/2023
PHILADELPHIA PA NC11302230 03/25/2023
MINNEAPOLIS MN NC11302294 03/25/2023
SEATTLE WA NC11294603 03/18/2023
​
Garage Assistant:
MCALLEN TX NC11291630 03/16/2023
AURORA IL NC11302233 03/25/2023
​
General Clerk VMF:
MANCHESTER NH NC11299377 03/24/2023
​
Electronic Technician:
NORTH READING MA NC11299182 03/24/2023
CHICAGO IL NC11292188 03/17/2023
DETROIT MI NC11300595 03/24/2023
LOUISVILLE KY NC11301165 03/25/2023
MEMPHIS TN NC11297768 03/23/2023
PHILADELPHIA PA NC11302246 03/25/2023
WHITE PLAINS NY NC11301212 03/25/2023
MEMPHIS TN NC11293110 03/18/2023
CAPITOL HEIGHTS MD NC11294867 03/19/2023
MANKATO MN NC11302194 03/25/2023
NORTH READING MA NC11297614 03/23/2023
BEMIDJI MN NC11300829 03/24/2023
COPPELL TX NC11299593 03/24/2023
LUBBOCK TX NC11294802 03/19/2023
PHILADELPHIA PA NC11302236 03/25/2023
WASHINGTON DC NC11297954 03/23/2023
WEST FARGO ND NC11302144 03/25/2023
​
NON-Maintenance jerbs:
​
SALES,SVCS/DISTRIBUTION ASSOC:
GLASGOW MT NC11296091 03/21/2023
MAPLE FALLS WA NC11296082 03/19/2023
FLORA VISTA NM NC11305346 03/28/2023
EASTSOUND WA NC11295971 03/20/2023
CULLEOKA TN NC11294523 03/18/2023
CORVALLIS MT NC11299118 03/24/2023
WYMORE NE NC11299107 03/23/2023
PALMYRA VA NC11299598 03/24/2023
FREELAND WA NC11301079 03/25/2023
BASSETT NE NC11294668 03/18/2023
SPRINGDALE WA NC11296087 03/20/2023
PERKINSTON MS NC11297989 03/23/2023
SELLS AZ NC11302414 03/25/2023
KENAI AK NC11300907 03/24/2023
ASPEN CO NC11297726 03/23/2023
ABERDEEN MS NC11297984 03/23/2023
BORGER TX NC11299103 03/24/2023
HONEY BROOK PA NC11296174 03/22/2023
DALLASTOWN PA NC11296576 03/22/2023
WATERLOO NE NC11298987 03/23/2023
VALDERS WI NC11301030 03/25/2023
SELLS AZ NC11302451 03/25/2023
RUTLAND MA NC11299516 03/24/2023
ROY WA NC11296081 03/20/2023
REEDLEY CA NC11296222 03/24/2023
QUILCENE WA NC11296078 03/20/2023
PIEDMONT OK NC11297962 03/23/2023
ORTING WA NC11297556 03/22/2023
ORLEANS MA NC11298202 03/23/2023
OLIVET MI NC11291746 03/17/2023
HILLS IA NC11299034 03/23/2023
ESSEX MA NC11296340 03/22/2023
DEXTER OR NC11296094 03/21/2023
COOL CA NC11300901 03/24/2023
CLARKSTON WA NC11295974 03/20/2023
BETHPAGE TN NC11294606 03/18/2023
SLIPPERY ROCK PA NC11296544 03/22/2023
CAVE JUNCTION OR NC11296085 03/21/2023
SAINT MATTHEWS SC NC11302467 03/26/2023
HICO TX NC11293402 03/18/2023
WILLARDS MD NC11298205 03/23/2023
WAIMANALO HI NC11294630 03/18/2023
LAKELAND MI NC11302798 03/26/2023
CARMEL VALLEY CA NC11298211 03/24/2023
HOWARD LAKE MN NC11302853 03/26/2023
GORDON NE NC11294636 03/18/2023
CASTROVILLE CA NC11297538 03/22/2023
DELTA JUNCTION AK NC11300799 03/24/2023
BLOOMING PRAIRIE MN NC11296095 03/20/2023
​
City Carrier:
BROOMFIELD CO NC11275444 03/21/2023
ALBANY NY NC11305449 03/28/2023
APTOS CA NC11291514 03/24/2023
BARRINGTON IL NC11294396 03/25/2023
CAMP HILL PA NC11296490 03/22/2023
EAST PALO ALTO CA NC11292056 03/24/2023
GLENSHAW PA NC11296496 03/22/2023
LAKE FOREST IL NC11294505 03/28/2023
LOS ALTOS CA NC11291594 03/24/2023
MC LEAN VA NC11288929 03/15/2023
MORGAN HILL CA NC11292053 03/24/2023
MOUNT PROSPECT IL NC11293521 03/26/2023
MOUNTAIN VIEW CA NC11292059 03/24/2023
MUNDELEIN IL NC11293656 03/27/2023
OAKLAND CA NC11297772 03/24/2023
OWATONNA MN NC11297955 03/23/2023
RICHMOND CA NC11297763 03/23/2023
SAN JOSE CA NC11297773 03/24/2023
SANTA BARBARA CA NC11291592 03/28/2023
SANTA CLARA CA NC11290813 03/24/2023
SCHENECTADY NY NC11305445 03/28/2023
SOUTH SEATTLE WA NC11297967 03/24/2023
SUNNYVALE CA NC11292052 03/24/2023
TAPPAN NY NC11290450 03/25/2023
WATSONVILLE CA NC11291605 03/24/2023
WHEELING IL NC11293660 03/26/2023
WHEELING IL NC11294607 03/27/2023
CAMPBELL CA NC11290875 03/24/2023
CENTRAL SEATTLE WA NC11297973 03/24/2023
NORTH SEATTLE WA NC11298157 03/24/2023
ARVADA CO NC11290373 03/26/2023
BUFFALO GROVE IL NC11293711 03/26/2023
CORTE MADERA CA NC11298159 03/23/2023
CUPERTINO CA NC11291553 03/24/2023
DES PLAINES IL NC11294509 03/25/2023
GLENVIEW IL NC11294504 03/26/2023
GRAND ISLAND NE NC11294521 03/27/2023
IOWA CITY IA NC11297529 03/25/2023
LOS GATOS CA NC11291546 03/24/2023
MILL VALLEY CA NC11298160 03/23/2023
NORTH WALES PA NC11296317 03/22/2023
SAINT PAUL MN NC11297860 03/24/2023
SAN CARLOS CA NC11298164 03/23/2023
SAN FRANCISCO CA NC11297864 03/24/2023
SOUTH SHORE - BOSTON MA NC11297721 03/24/2023
WATERTOWN WI NC11296556 03/22/2023
WAUKEGAN IL NC11293614 03/26/2023
WAYNESBORO VA NC11291790 03/17/2023
WHEELING IL NC11293706 03/26/2023
WILMETTE IL NC11293718 03/25/2023
APPLETON WI NC11296321 03/23/2023
AURORA CO NC11297870 03/24/2023
CAPITOLA CA NC11291515 03/24/2023
CEDAR RAPIDS IA NC11291946 03/22/2023
DAVENPORT IA NC11289974 03/23/2023
DENVER CO NC11297956 03/24/2023
DENVER CO NC11297959 03/24/2023
DENVER CO NC11297979 03/24/2023
DULUTH MN NC11302792 03/26/2023
GLENS FALLS NY NC11305507 03/28/2023
HIBBING MN NC11302779 03/26/2023
KANSAS CITY MO NC11297762 03/24/2023
LAFAYETTE CA NC11298966 03/23/2023
LAKE FOREST IL NC11294494 03/25/2023
LAKEWOOD CO NC11297958 03/24/2023
MADISON WI NC11297951 03/24/2023
MEDINA OH NC11291784 03/28/2023
MENLO PARK CA NC11298965 03/23/2023
MILPITAS CA NC11291557 03/24/2023
MISSION KS NC11297765 03/24/2023
MOUNT HOREB WI NC11296314 03/22/2023
NORTHBROOK IL NC11293552 03/26/2023
NORTHGLENN CO NC11297995 03/24/2023
REDWOOD CITY CA NC11298296 03/23/2023
RICHMOND CA NC11298971 03/23/2023
SAN MATEO CA NC11298167 03/23/2023
SAN RAFAEL CA NC11298161 03/23/2023
SANDY UT NC11305342 03/28/2023
SANTA CRUZ CA NC11291625 03/24/2023
SANTA ROSA CA NC11304471 03/28/2023
VALHALLA NY NC11296158 03/26/2023
GREATER BOSTON - BOSTON MA NC11297714 03/24/2023
AMES IA NC11289073 03/23/2023
NORTH SHORE - BOSTON MA NC11297752 03/24/2023
​
Rural Carrier:
BROOKINGS SD NC11304416 03/27/2023
PULLMAN WA NC11289191 03/22/2023
MIDDLETON WI NC11294805 03/19/2023
MENOMONIE WI NC11294698 03/19/2023
MANITOWOC WI NC11294770 03/19/2023
MADISON WI NC11294682 03/19/2023
MADISON WI NC11294641 03/19/2023
HILLSBORO ND NC11304472 03/26/2023
ELDORA IA NC11304281 03/27/2023
EAU CLAIRE WI NC11294679 03/19/2023
EAU CLAIRE WI NC11294677 03/19/2023
BRIGHTON CO NC11304335 03/27/2023
AMERY WI NC11294788 03/19/2023
WILMINGTON NC NC11301218 03/25/2023
VERGENNES VT NC11301210 03/25/2023
PITTSFIELD NH NC11298031 03/23/2023
OTTUMWA IA NC11304280 03/27/2023
OSKALOOSA IA NC11304283 03/27/2023
MENOMONIE WI NC11294782 03/19/2023
MADISON WI NC11294795 03/19/2023
MADISON WI NC11294647 03/19/2023
LEBANON PA NC11297537 03/22/2023
HORACE ND NC11300532 03/24/2023
CLINTONVILLE WI NC11294692 03/19/2023
BRIGHTON CO NC11302512 03/25/2023
BALLSTON SPA NY NC11305443 03/26/2023
HUMBOLDT IA NC11304332 03/27/2023
YORK PA NC11296590 03/22/2023
SHIPPENSBURG PA NC11296593 03/22/2023
SCARBOROUGH ME NC11302736 03/26/2023
RUMNEY NH NC11297957 03/23/2023
HARRISBURG PA NC11296582 03/22/2023
DENVER PA NC11296596 03/22/2023
CHATTAROY WA NC11291846 03/22/2023
MADISON WI NC11294777 03/19/2023
​
Motor Vehicle Operator:
SPRINGFIELD IL P&DC NC11304272 03/27/2023
PORTLAND OR P&DC NC11302458 03/25/2023
SAN JOSE CA P&DC NC11302459 03/25/2023
SEATTLE WA P&DC NC11302460 03/25/2023
SYRACUSE NY P&DC NC11302215 03/25/2023
​
Tractor Trailer Operator:
CHICAGO NDC NC11301112 03/25/2023
DENVER CO P&DC NC11302222 03/25/2023
DVD BLDG NJ P&DC NC11302090 03/25/2023
MORGAN NY P&DC NC11301120 03/25/2023
OAKLAND CA P&DC NC11302098 03/25/2023
PORTLAND OR P&DC NC11301306 03/25/2023
SAINT PAUL MN P&DC NC11302211 03/24/2023
SEATTLE NDC NC11302206 03/25/2023
SEATTLE WA P&DC NC11302223 03/25/2023
SO JERSEY NJ P&DC NC11301124 03/25/2023
NEW JERSEY NDC NC11301302 03/25/2023
TACOMA WA P&DC NC11302457 03/25/2023
BUSSE IL P&DC NC11301104 03/25/2023
SAN FRANCISCO P&DC NC11302202 03/25/2023
CAROL STREAM IL P&DC NC11301106 03/25/2023
CHICAGO INTL SVC CTR NC11301109 03/25/2023
MIDDLESEX-ESSEX P&DC NC11301115 03/25/2023
SALT LAKE CITY P&DC NC11305448 03/28/2023
​
No experience necessary for the laborer custodial or maintenance mechanic positions. It helps on the interview but you can surely think of maintenance related experience to relay for an interview. Based on fixing things around your house, the car etc. Always mention working safely.
​
Pro tip: You can apply for any job that has an exam opening and the test is administered local to yourself. Make sure you're serious and score decently; you can turn down the job offer. Keep a physical copy of your exam score, I believe they are good for two years.
The reason is: These job postings can be posted externally at capacity for testing, meaning they will not allow you to take the exam if they have enough qualified applicants. However, if you have a test score on the books, you are a qualified applicant.
​
Explanation of MVO/TTO to save time:
MVO= CDL B Can only drive box trucks on public roads, can drive anything for moves on postal property.
TTO= CDL A Can drive anything.
​
USPS provides the training. (Maintenance jobs at least. TTO and management...GOOD LUCK)
​
You don't have to be crazy to work here. We'll train you. Everything but proper email usage.

Hey y'all.
Upgrading from my current Ryzen 5 2600 / 1080 build that I've had for about 5 years now to hopefully a new 4000 series GPU / intel-based CPU. I'm aiming to play at 4K maxed settings, but for now just have a 1440p monitor that I would love to get high framerates out of. I mostly want to get into some of the newer games from this year, such as Hitman World of Assassination, Starfield, Diablo IV, and more. I am hoping for a final check to make sure I'm not missing anything.
I've looked through some completed builds and it looks like the Fractal Design North has enough clearance for the 4080 and the Corsair PSU. I'm most worried about fitting it all in and wanted someone to check my work on if that Cable Mod PCI-e cable should do the trick for the 4080 rather than having to have a mess of wires and adapters.
Thank you so much!
PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	Intel Core i5-13600K 3.5 GHz 14-Core Processor	$299.84 @ Newegg
CPU Cooler	Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler	$33.90 @ Amazon
Thermal Compound	Arctic Silver 5 High-Density Polysynthetic Silver 3.5 g Thermal Paste	$7.65 @ Amazon
Motherboard	Asus TUF GAMING Z790-PLUS WIFI ATX LGA1700 Motherboard	$274.99 @ Amazon
Memory	G.Skill Ripjaws S5 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6400 CL32 Memory	$139.99 @ Newegg
Storage	Samsung 980 Pro 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive	$75.00 @ Amazon
Video Card	Asus TUF GAMING GeForce RTX 4080 16 GB Video Card	$1199.99 @ Amazon
Case	Fractal Design North ATX Mid Tower Case	Purchased For $167.56
Power Supply	Corsair RM1000x (2021) 1000 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply	$189.95 @ Amazon
Custom	CableMod C-Series Pro ModMesh Sleeved 12VHPWR PCI-e Cable for Corsair (Black, 16-pin to Triple 8-pin, 600mm)	$29.90 @ Amazon
Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
Total	$2418.77
Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-03-28 22:24 EDT-0400

First, thank you to all that have helped me so far. With everyone’s input this is what I have. I know I want the cpu, gpu, and 32 ram. For OS, I plan on downloading windows on a usb and then find a cheap/legit (oxymoron I know) product key.
I added a monitor because after searching local swap shops I didn’t like what I found, but this has put me a little over budget. Not a huge deal breaker, but is there some things I can cut corners with to get below the $1k price tag and not regret it? Or should I just keep it as is?
Thank you all again. After this, parts will be ordered so I can begin building my first PC 😎
PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	Intel Core i5-12400F 2.5 GHz 6-Core Processor	$159.71 @ Amazon
CPU Cooler	ARCTIC Freezer 34 eSports DUO CPU Cooler	$54.30 @ Amazon
Thermal Compound	Arctic Silver 5 High-Density Polysynthetic Silver 3.5 g Thermal Paste	$7.65 @ Amazon
Motherboard	Gigabyte B660M DS3H AX DDR4 Micro ATX LGA1700 Motherboard	$99.99 @ Newegg
Memory	G.Skill Trident Z 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory	$75.99 @ Newegg
Storage	Silicon Power A60 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 3.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive	$44.99 @ Amazon
Video Card	MSI MECH 2X OC Radeon RX 6650 XT 8 GB Video Card	$259.99 @ Newegg
Case	Fractal Design Focus G ATX Mid Tower Case	$64.99 @ Walmart
Power Supply	Thermaltake Toughpower Grand RGB 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply	$94.99 @ Newegg
Monitor	Asus VG258QR 24.5" 1920 x 1080 165 Hz Monitor	$189.00 @ Amazon
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total (before mail-in rebates)	$1096.60
	Mail-in rebates	-$45.00
	Total	$1051.60
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-03-28 21:28 EDT-0400

He is 46-33-1 in five seasons with the Vikings and has completed 67.8 percent of his passes for 20,934 yards 153 touchdowns and 50 interceptions. He has taken more hits than any QB in that time. Last year he took more hits than any QB EVER in the History of the NFL. Any QB we get has to be able to withstand playing behind the 2 worst pass blocking Gs in the NFL and the still terrible Bradbury look at SF look at MIA even look at Lamar etc or PHI when Hurts went out ... QB injuries are a serious issue.
Will that QB be able to come back from 32 points down and come up with the best 4th Quarter OT in NFL HISTORY? Will he be able to lead a team to 5 TDs with long drives of 50 plus 60 plus and two 70 plus and then get a 2 PAT on top of all that? Would he be able to win 11 one score games and tie a record for comeback wins with 8. Be able to put up those numbers with a new OC every year and a coach who hates you and makes it clear and who sabotages the offense?
Will the new QB offer a hometown discount and take less money than the market says he is worth. Will that QB never complain. Will that QB have 31 4th quarter comebacks 29 GWDs? Will that QB put up yardage, TD, completion numbers that are up there with Brees Stafford Rivers etc and end up as #8 all time rated QB.
Be careful what you wish for. Be careful of wanting something due to the feelings rather than facts.
That QB also has to keep in supershape and be able to play until his late 30s make a Pro Bowl at 34.
That QB as to be able to take a team with a #31 defense, shaky OT, first time playcaller, no deep no.2 WR, terrible pass block (3rd most sacks most pressures from the 2 Guards), a weak running game, Look how Russell Wilson did with a top 10 defense how does he do with a #31 defense lol.
People want Kirk gone either because of lies: he is a checkdown QB (since 2018 has never been to 10/15 in checkdowns at QB - a true checkdown QB is Brady) or that his salary prevents us from building a team around him . Or they want him gone because of a feeling that he cannot win a SB or that SB/playoffs are a QB stat. This is a disease among some Vikings fans. I remember some wanting Tarkenton gone after the 4th SB loss because they had a feeling he could not win the SB or they wanted DG gone because he couldn't win in the playoffs and would never win a SB. Or they wanted Moss gone because he took plays off (all WRs take plays off). Feelings over facts is not a sensible approach.
A sensible approach in a world where Daniel Jones and Carr make more money then Kirk and where QBs are making more and more each year is take his discount offer sign him for 3 or so years. Draft QBs the next few years and see if any of them develop and if Kirk goes off a cliff in 3 or 4 or 5 years we have someone capable. What is not sensible is ending up in a situation like the JETS or NO or NYG this year that is lunacy.
The grass is always greener but when you get to the other side... you might be screwed if Kirk has another great year... he will not offer a discount he will put his numbers up for the highest bidder and if the Vikes want to keep him then they will end up paying way more and if they can't afford him then they will be stuck with a Mond type or Marriota type lol. Kwesi has made numerous mistakes this one might end up his worst biggest mistake ever.

Not gonna lie, I might try a bottle... clearly we're a very predictable group.
Name: Old Pioneer Bourbon
Slogan: "Forged by tradition, aged to perfection."
Label: The label for Old Pioneer Bourbon would feature a rustic, hand-crafted look to appeal to traditional bourbon drinkers. The main image on the label would be a silhouette of a rugged pioneer, standing in front of a picturesque landscape with mountains and a river in the background. The font for the name "Old Pioneer Bourbon" would be bold and classic, with an aged, vintage look to it.
Description: Old Pioneer Bourbon is a classic bourbon brand that pays homage to the early days of American whiskey making. It is made using a traditional mash bill of 70% corn, 15% rye, and 15% malted barley, and is aged for a minimum of six years in new, charred American oak barrels. The result is a rich and complex bourbon with a deep amber color and notes of vanilla, caramel, and oak.
Old Pioneer Bourbon is designed to appeal to traditional bourbon drinkers who appreciate the time-honored methods of whiskey making. The brand represents the spirit of the American pioneer and celebrates the rugged individualism and perseverance that helped build our country. With its classic flavor profile and rustic, hand-crafted label, Old Pioneer Bourbon is the perfect choice for those who want to experience the true essence of American bourbon.

Hi, I'll be hiking the CDT Nobo this year and have two friends who'd like to join me in Wyoming for the Wind River Range (including Knapsack Col and Cir que of the Towers), and possibly on into Yellowstone.
They're considering flying in or driving up (from New Orleans).
Unfortunately I know very little of Wyoming except for names and locations of towns on the maps.
If they drive, where's a good place to meet them for the more beautiful sections of the hike through Wyoming, which, I assume, begins in the Winds. How difficult would it be for them to get back to their vehicle if we hike through Yellowstone? Do you have any recomendations about exit points to make it easier for them to return to the vehicle if they choose to drive?
If they fly in, what's a good airport for them to fly into? Where is a good place to meet up with them? Assuming we hike all the way through Yellowstone, what is the best airport for them to fly out of?
Unfortunately, I told them that I won't know when I'll make it to a meeting place until I'm probably halfway through Colorado (I hope). I'd like to give them enough time to get decent airfare rates should they choose to fly.
Thanks for any and all advice you can offer!

Does anyone else miss Albert Awol announcing in the Jungle Cruise queue? I felt like his little snippets had some good jungle cruise backstory and added to the quirkiness of the cruise. A favorite quote of mine is the part when he’s reading mail from one skipper to another and he says, “here’s one now from the skipper of the Senegal Sal to the skipper of the Irrawaddy Irma, “if you can’t drive, stay off the river” isn’t that nice?”
For reference, the old queue music with our boy Awol: https://youtu.be/AhTP_fwptFQ

I got a good bit of money and wanna buy at least a decent pc, is everything here alright ?
Also it says that "an additional 4TX power connector may be needed" what can I replace to solve that issue and what to?
This is my first time trying to do this so I'm not the smartest

Hello everyone, so I'll be moving to Southfield for my new job. I need suggestions for a good apartment complex, single bedroom, in the $1500-1700 range. I did look into Farmington hills and Royal Oak areas, however the sheer number of negative reviews (bugs, rowdy neighbors, poor maintenance etc) made it very hard to choose a place!
The thing that is the utmost priority for my partner and I is security. Everything else comes second. I suppose other nice to haves include an in unit washer and dryer and good parking. As this will be my first apartment I'm honestly not sure what else I should be looking out for, still learning that part! And I'd prefer the commute to be as short as possible as I'll be doing a lot of driving back and forth, (from the research I did so far, usually from royal oak it's around 10-15 mins, and 20-25 mins from Farmington hills).
Cheers!

“I know you’re awake…Katherine…Kaaaaatheriiiine…”
“Shut up.” I had been awake for a little while, just staring at the wall.
“I knew it.”
“Can you not sleep?” I rolled over and looked at him as I asked the question.
James was in his rocking chair in the corner of our bedroom right next to the window. The moon outside was illuminating his face.
“I’m ok. Just a lot on my mind.”
“Like what?” I did my best to sit up. I was almost at my due date and I was enormous. During the pregnancy I wasn’t quite as sensitive to his little issues that I normally was.
James suffered from severe bouts of anxiety and he would spend lots of nights just rocking in his chair, trying not to worry about things.
“I think we should get a dog.”
“What?”
“We should get a dog. Every kid should grow up with a dog.” He turned his head to look at me. Most of his face was in shadow, but his eyes were bright. He smiled at me.
“Ok. Is that it? That’s what’s keeping you up?”
“Yes. Oh, and I also love you.”
“I love you too.”
“And I farted.” I had never known James to end anything on any kind of sappy note, so he always had to say or do something childish to ruin the moment.
I loved him so much.
-
“He’s kind of gross.” There were so many dogs at the shelter, but my husband immediately went to the mangiest one. A large mutt with his tongue hanging limply out of the side of his mouth. The mousey brown fur looked like someone had teased it with a brush and sealed the deal with an entire can of hairspray, and he had a slight limp as it walked toward this strange new man making baby talk. I watched the dog cock its head from side to side like it understood what James was saying.
“He’s perfect.” I could tell that James was in love.
“Why him?”
“Well…every other little guy in here is so animated and vibrant. He’s…um…not.”
“He looks like an oversized mouse with bad hair.”
“That’s perfect!”
“What?”
“We can name him Feivel! Does Feivel like that name?! Who’s a bugaboo doggie?! Who’s da doggie?!” The dog started making inquisitive whines and that lazy tongue came to life and began to lick the strange man's fingers through the chain link fence.
Feivel came home with us, and for a month that dog never left my husband’s side.
-
“What happened?”
“Can you put me on speaker so Art can hear me?”
“Ok. You’re scaring me Katherine.” I was trying to hold it together. James’ parents had recently moved to the east coast, so I had no choice but to call them on the phone with the news. “Ok, you’re on speaker.”
“Ok. James… um… James had an accident. It was a hit and run. Someone hit him with a car while he was crossing the street and then just kept driving.”
“Oh my God! Is he alright?”
“He’s um…” I had been with James since our sophomore year in high school, but we had been friends since we were six. I had known his parents for almost just as long.
“He’s…he’s gone.”
“Oh my God…”
I had to make lots of phone calls that day. It was the hardest day of my life.
-
“Mommy needs to talk to you.”
Feivel had been pacing the house for three days. When he wasn’t pacing, he would just sit at the front door waiting for James to come home. He wouldn't sit with me, almost like he blamed me for James not being there.
“Come here. Feivel! Come here.” He finally gave in and walked over to the couch. I patted the cushion next to me and he jumped on the couch and sat down.
He grunted at me several times and when he was done voicing his frustrations, his tongue jutted out of the side of his mouth and just hung there.
I don’t know if it sounds stupid or not, but I had a conversation with him about what had happened to his Daddy and why he wasn’t with us anymore. I felt like it would have been cruel not to.
He stared at me through the whole story and when I was finished, there was a heavy silence between us that was eventually broken by a small cry from him before he put his head in my lap.
-
Three weeks later, I had Casey. The birth was rough and there were multiple issues. For a little bit there, I was afraid that I might lose her too. She had to stay in the hospital longer than I would have liked, but when I was finally able to bring her home, Feivel took to her instantly.
He was always next to her.
-
As the years went by, I made sure Casey knew every detail about her father. I would tell her stories and Feivel would always add something in his own language. I don’t know if he was backing up what I said or perhaps contradicting it, but I do know he was always happy to be included in the reminiscing.
Shortly after she turned four, Casey’s favorite pastime was drawing with her crayons. I had quite a few pictures up on our fridge of our little family in the midst of imagined adventures. She always drew James in with us. The way she always emphasized his balding head would make me smile.
I would BBQ on Friday nights because James had always done the same.
When we first moved in, he had built a huge grilling station out of brick and bought this ridiculously large grill that could almost fit an entire cow inside of it. James had said we would need it for the amount of children and grandchildren that we were going to have. We would sit in front of it every Friday night with a bottle of whiskey while he cooked.
Casey and I would sit at the same table and have juice while we made hot dogs. I thought it was important to keep some of our traditions alive for Casey.
In spite of losing James, we were happy. I started to adjust to a life without a partner, which was not a very easy thing to do since we had been a part of each other’s lives since we were both six years old.
-
Almost five years after I lost James, I met Stephen. I was a busy woman with a young daughter and up to that point, I had not even thought about dating. There was something different about Stephen though. I was interested in him from the first time we met.
Casey and I were playing in the park with Feivel one day and somehow we lost him. He just vanished. I looked for him for hours while my mom watched Casey, but I couldn’t find him. For three days I was beside myself and Casey was constantly in tears. Then, Stephen showed up on my doorstep holding our Feivel at the end of a leash.
A tall man with thick hair and trendy glasses wearing a flannel and jeans.
“Oh my God!”
“Hi. I uh…found him in the park down by the river.” I snatched him up and he started whimpering and shaking his butt back and forth. I completely ignored the man at my door. When Feivel had had enough of my pets, he ran inside to look for Casey.
“Thank you so much. Oh my God, you have no idea how much we missed him.” I was wiping tears from my eyes.
“Oh, I might have a clue.”
“Thank you.”
“No problem.”
As I was wiping my nose on the sleeve of my sweatshirt, I realized that the man standing at my door was gorgeous.
“Can I…let me give you some money or something. You have no idea how happy you just made my daughter.”
“No, that's ok. Just happy to help.”
“Thank you.”
There was something about the way he looked at me with his eyes. My stomach fluttered. I wanted to invite him in, and the fact that I wanted to do that upset me.
I thanked him. I didn’t even ask him for his name. I’ll admit that I even closed the door on him a little more abruptly than I meant to.
All three of us shared my bed that night. It was the best night’s sleep I’d had in years.
-
A couple weeks went by and then I saw him again, the man who had found Feivel. He was sitting in the park with his back against a tree, reading a book. Casey and I had been taking turns throwing a frisbee for Feivel, and I saw him out of the corner of my eye. I decided that I would thank him again and apologize for being so awkward.
As I walked closer, I took in every detail. I was sure he was a few years younger than I was and he looked very athletic. His glasses rested on the tip of his nose as he read from The Winter of Our Discontent; Steinbeck has always been my favorite author.
Feivel must have seen him just as I was about to say something because he reached the man before I did. I could hear Casey calling for me.
“Hold on honey. Give me a second.”
Feivel was all over the man and he was laughing at the writhing whining beast who was trying its best to lick every inch of his face.
“Feivel, don’t be rude.”
“No, it's fine. I’m glad he remembers me.”
“Yeah. Wow, he really remembers you.” Feivel was so excited that he started to whimper and expose his tummy. “Feivel! Have some self respect!”
The man stood up next to me. My stomach was fluttering again and I could not stop looking at his eyes.
“Hey, I have to apologize about…uh the way I kinda shut my door in your face.” He laughed.
“You don’t have to apologize.”
“Mommy?” Casey had run up behind me and was partially hiding herself behind my leg while she stared at the man. “Mommy?”
“This is my daughter Casey.”
“Hello Casey.”
“Hello.”
“My name’s Stephen.” Casey stayed behind my leg.
“It’s ok honey. Tell him your name.”
“I’m Casey and this is my mom. Her name is Katherine.”
“Well…you’re a very pretty girl and it’s very nice to meet you.” I noticed that his eyes started to tear up while he was looking at my Casey. He wiped his eyes and shook his head. He was clearly embarrassed. “I’m sorry. She just… reminds me of my niece. We lost her a few years ago.”
We talked for a while that day. Every time he looked over at Casey, I swore that he was on the verge of tears.
-
It didn’t take very long at all; I was hooked. Feivel was hooked. Eventually, even Casey was hooked.
I tried to take it slow. I didn’t want to date anyone. I wasn’t over James and I knew it, but I just wanted to be around this man and I honestly could not explain what it was at the time. I always wanted him at the house, so he was there all the time. I loved it when he looked at me.
For the most part, he was great, but there were some things that were off. There were things I should have paid more attention to, but again, there was something about him that made me feel like I needed him.
He would kiss me with his eyes open every time, and even though the way he kissed me was great, something about it still gave me the creeps. I would crack my eyes open sometimes in the hopes that he had stopped doing it. Every time I saw those eyes staring back at me, I felt uneasy. I had only ever been with James, so I thought maybe some guys just did that, even though all of my friends thought it was weird too.
He also did things when he would come over that would raise the hairs on the back of my neck. Maybe that description is a little too harsh for what I was thinking at the time, but it fits now.
He would move things around the house. The toilet paper would be folded in that terrible triangle every time. James used to do that. He would also randomly adjust my coffee cups in the cabinet so the handles all faced the same way. Again, something my James used to do.
I had no idea what he did for a living, he told me he was in construction, but I had no idea who he worked for. He had never invited me over to his house, nor did he ever talk about his family.
My friends told me that I needed to relax and just enjoy myself. I admit, for the most part he seemed like the almost perfect guy. It was almost like he knew everything about me.
-
It was three months before he stayed overnight. I had Casey stay over at my mother’s house because it didn’t feel right to have her there.
We tried to be intimate, but I felt dirty. He said it was fine. He stayed anyway.
In the middle of the night I rolled over and cracked my eyes open. He was in the rocking chair in the corner. The moon was illuminating his eyes while he looked out the window. I thought I was dreaming for a minute.
“I know you’re awake…Katherine…Katherine?”
I didn’t say anything. I pretended to sleep. He turned his face to me and smiled. His eyes were so wide and bright.
“Katherine?”
I never went back to sleep that night. I just laid there for a while going back and forth from feeling like I was betraying my husband to feeling like I was an idiot who should just enjoy having a relationship with someone.
Around four in the morning, I had finally begun to drift off to sleep, but Stephen started making noises.
I rolled over and realized that his eyes were wide open. I was going to say something, but he was asleep. I waved my hand in front of his face to make sure.
He began to grunt and his body would shake every now and then. He was having a bad dream and his open eyes began darting back and forth.
“Get out of my head…” He whispered it twice. “Fuck you…out of my head…Mine now…”
It was too much to take. I quietly slid off of the bed and backed my way out of the room. Just as I made it to my door, his eyes moved and focused on me. He was still asleep, but it was like his eyes were watching me just the same.
I walked downstairs. He continued to talk in his sleep for over an hour. I was pretty sure right then that I had to break it off, or at least really slow down. I just didn’t feel right. And to be honest, I was a little creeped out.
-
I was drinking my coffee in the kitchen and thinking about what I was going to say when something caught my eye. Casey’s pictures of our family on the fridge looked different.I got up and took a closer look. James had been changed in every picture. He didn’t have short hair anymore, it was full and he was also wearing glasses. My heart skipped a beat and I felt a terrible lump in my throat. I wondered what this man had said to my daughter to convince her to remove her father from the pictures. I was done.
A few minutes later, he came downstairs in a rush. He was wearing a black Flogging Molly t-shirt. James’ favorite shirt.
“What are you doing?”
“Good morning! I forgot to turn on the alarm! I’m going to be late for work!”
“Stephen, why are you wearing that shirt?”
“I found it in your closet.”
“But why are you wearing it?”
“Well in case you forgot, I ripped the one I was wearing last night.”
“That’s my husband’s shirt.”
“Oh come on, he’s not going to be wearing it anytime soon. I gotta go, I’ll see you after work.” He leaned in for a kiss, but I backed away. “What’s the matter?”
“I don’t think this is going to work out.”
“What?”
“I think we need to take a break.”
“Over a t-shirt?”
“There’s…there’s a lot of things Stephen.”
“Are you being fucking serious with me right now?” His voice raised, something I had not yet experienced with him. Something in my head told me to back away from him, so I did. I backed right up against the counter within reach of my knives. It made me feel better.
“I think so.”
“But I don’t want to do that. Tell me what I did and I’ll fix it. I’ll take off the shirt. Katherine…please.” I looked right into his eyes. I thought maybe I was overreacting, but the pictures, messing with my daughter to erase her father, that was the breaking point.
“Please leave.”
The kindness in his face fell away to an ugliness that made me start to tremble. He noticed it. A smile slowly started to rise and it looked like he was going to take a step closer. I rested my hand on the counter behind me, inches from the knife block. He halted and stood still.
“Feivel!” My dog ran into the kitchen at the sound of my voice and looked back and forth between us. I could tell that he sensed the tension. Feivel walked over to my side and just looked back at Stephen without making a sound.
“Are you going to sick the dog on me? Are you crazy or something?”
“Stephen, I just want you to leave.”
“I thought I did everything right.” He let out a sigh. “I had all the answers. I know everything about you and I still can’t make it work. This cannot be my fault…it’s not…it’s your fault! Why are you doing this?!”
“Leave. Now.”
“Ok…I just…” He started laughing and looked down. He tapped my husband's shirt. “Well…shit… I tried to fuck Katherine, and all I got was this lousy tshirt…is that how this going to end?” He just stared at me. I wouldn’t answer him. “I don’t think so. You’re going to change your mind.” He turned and walked out of the door, slamming it behind him.
After he left, I locked all of the doors and called my mother. I told her what happened and not to take Casey to daycare. I told her that I would be able to pick her up in just a little bit. I called all my friends and let them know what happened. I basically wanted to hear other people tell me that Stephen was nuts and in the event that something happened to me, I wanted people to know where to look first.
I ripped all of Casey’s drawings off of the fridge and crumpled them up and threw them away.
I walked back upstairs to get dressed and I noticed other things.
I had only kept a few clothes that belonged to my husband and some of them were missing. I had a small jewelry box on the bathroom counter, and most of the rings and necklaces that James had given me were also missing. I walked through the house and began to notice random little things were missing here and there and the only thing they all had in common were that they were gifts given to me by James.
-
Before I picked up Casey at my mother’s, I called the police to see if anything could be done, even though I was pretty sure that I knew the answer. Other than being a creep and a thief, Stephen actually hadn’t done anything. There was nothing the police could do.
I took Casey to the park to explain to her why Stephen wouldn’t be around anymore. Feivel was sitting next to her in the backseat. I started by asking her about her drawings.
“I didn’t change them.”
“Casey, honey, I saw them this morning. They’re changed. You changed the way daddy looks.”
“But I didn’t mommy. I wouldn’t do that. Maybe Stephen did it.”
“You think Stephen took your crayons and changed your drawings?”
“Maybe. He thought he was going to be my new daddy anyway, so maybe he thought it was a good idea.”
“Wait. Who said he was going to be your new daddy?”
“He did. He said it lots.”
When we got to the park, I made sure Casey stayed right next to me. We started throwing the frisbee down by the river so Feivel could play in the water if he wanted. I asked her some more questions about Stephen and anything else he might have said to her. It didn’t sound like he had said much more.
We were about to leave when Casey started waving at something.
“Look Mommy, it’s Stephen!”
He was standing on the other side of the river, and he was waving back to us. He was wearing a button up shirt and a pair of jeans that both belonged to my husband. He was smiling at me.
“Mommy?”
“Yes?”
“Are you mad at Stephen or something?”
“Yes honey. I don’t think we’re going to be talking to Stephen anymore. I think he needs to go away.” I reached down and scooped up my daughter and began to walk back toward our car.
“We’re going home. Come on Feivel! Feivel?” My dog had been staring at Stephen and he still hadn’t moved. “Feivel, come!”
Stephen whistled and that was enough for Feivel. He jumped into the river and began swimming toward the other side. I called after him over and over, but he eventually made it to the other side and ran over to Stephen. He gave me one last wave before he reached down and clipped a leash onto Feivel’s collar. He turned around and started to walk away.
I ran back to the car and put Casey in her car seat as fast as I could and I drove to the parking lot on the other side of the river, but by the time I got there, he was gone with our dog.
-
I filled out a report with the police and tried to get a restraining order.
“Ok, so here’s the problem. You said his name was Stephen Tasavo?”
“That’s right.”
“Ok look. This is not going to make you feel any better, but this man doesn’t exist.”
“What?!”
“He gave you a false name, Miss. Couldn’t find anybody by that name fitting his description. You got him on social media anywhere? Does he have any friends?”
“I…I don’t know. I don’t have any of that crap. Social media I mean. I guess I just…never asked him about any of it. We’ve only been seeing each other for a few months.”
“Well, from the pictures you took on your phone, we know what he looks like. We’re going to keep an eye out for him, whoever he is. I suggest you keep your doors locked and inform the people at your daughter’s school. If there’s anywhere else you can go, I don’t think that would be a bad idea.”
I went home that night anyway. Casey was a mess after Stephen took Feivel and I thought that it would be a mistake if I didn’t give her some sense of normalcy. I had four friends stay with me that night.
-
A month later I got a call from a number that I didn’t recognize.
“Hello?”
“Don’t hang up the phone Katherine. Feivel really wants to hear your voice.”
“You sick fuck! Give me back my dog!” He was quiet for a moment.
“I've got you on speaker and you’re saying nasty things like that. He can hear everything you’re saying. Can’t you?! Can’t you?! Who’s a bugaboo doggie?! Who’s da doggie?!”
“Stephen…I’ll do whatever you want…please just give him back to me.”
“Come on Katherine. I know you know that’s not my name.”
“What is your name?”
“You know, I thought I had to become someone else to be with you. But I don’t think so. I’m going to like you getting to know the real me.”
“Please just give me my dog.”
“I’m going to make you see that it was destiny that your husband died. I’m going to make you see that his death was what it took to bring us together.”
“You son of a bitch!”
“Anyway, I’ll see you soon.” He hung up the phone.
I called the police, and after that night, I didn’t hear anything from Stephen for two months. Two months of looking over my shoulder. Two months of waiting.
I bought a gun. I kept it in the drawer of my bedside table. I wasn’t taking any chances.
-
I woke up with a start in the middle of the night and I heard the sound of muffled whining. I sat up in bed and looked around my bedroom before I grabbed the gun and got up. I walked to my window and noticed that it was slightly open. I looked down into the backyard.
Smoke was pouring out from underneath the closed lid on the grill. It looked like something was tied around the handles in order to keep it shut. I ran downstairs to the patio door. I opened it and held the gun in front of me. The smell of something burning was making me sick to my stomach. Something was crying out inside of the grill, frantically trying to get out. My heart sank as I realized that it was Feivel’s collar tied around the handle.
I screamed and grabbed the hose and turned it on. I lunged for the lid of the grill and I burned my hands as I tore away the collar from the handles.
I threw the top to the grill open and sprayed the hose inside. Feivel leapt out of the grill and down onto the brick patio. I soaked him with the hose. A belt had been tied around his muzzle. I ripped it off of his face and kept the water on him.
I turned to look back at the house. I didn’t want to leave him, but I realized that I had left my phone upstairs. I opened my mouth to scream for help, but then I had a hard time making any sound when I saw what was on the patio table. There was a bottle of whiskey on it with two glasses that had already been poured. There was a note on the table.
“It’s Friday Night! Time to BBQ!”
There was also something else on the table. A small fake rock. James and I had always kept it hidden amongst the other rocks in the backyard.It had a small compartment on the underside where we kept a spare key to our house. Stephen was in our house.
I looked back down to Feivel. I was left with the awful decision of having to leave my dog. He was gasping for air, but he was still alive. I had to get to Casey to make sure she was safe.
“Feivel, I’m sorry!” I left the hose laying across him and I ran back inside.
As I ran up the stairs, I saw that Casey’s door was closed and as I reached out for the knob, I heard a familiar noise coming from my room. The sound of a rocking chair. I cracked open Casey’s door and I could see that she was still asleep in her bed.
“Kaaaatheriiiiine…”
I closed the door and held the gun in front of me as I walked into my room.
The man I knew as Stephen was rocking in my husband's chair, wearing my husband’s clothes, and holding a house key that only myself and my husband knew about.
“I’ve missed you so much.” I raised the gun without saying a word. My hand was shaking. He was smiling and rocking back and forth. “You’re not going to shoot me.”
“Goodbye Stephen.” I pulled the trigger and nothing happened but a dry snap. I pulled the trigger again, but nothing happened.
“If you held that thing more often, you could probably tell that it’s just a little heavier when it has bullets in it.”
I lunged for my bedside table and pulled the drawer open. The small box of bullets was gone.
“I unloaded it while you were asleep.” He stood up. I ran for Casey’s door, but he caught me before I could open it. I felt his hand go over my mouth and he picked me up by my shoulders. I struggled as he carried me closer to the top of the stairs.
“I’ve watched you sleep for so many nights now, just wondering how I could get you back. But I think there might not be any saving of what we had.” He hit me across the face and threw me down the stairs.
I heard my ankles snap when I hit the floor, and I screamed. His footsteps were quiet as he started walking down the stairs.
“We could have had a life together. I really wanted that. I even put something on the grill, but then you went and ruined that too.”
“Mommy?!” Casey had run out of her bedroom and was at the top of the stairs looking down on us. Stephen was just a few steps away from me. I started to crawl along the floor toward the kitchen.
“Go back to your room Casey. You’re mother and I are fighting.”
“Casey! Get Mommy’s phone and call for help!” I screamed, as I pulled myself along the floor and into the kitchen. All I could think of was getting to the block of knives.
“Where do you think you're going off to? Wait, I know…”
Stephen ran around me and to the kitchen counter. He picked up the block of knives and spilled them on the floor. “Come and get ‘em Katherine.”
He walked back over and stood over me while I crawled toward the knives. He was laughing.
“To think, if someone hadn’t killed your husband, none of this would have happened.”
I tried to shut his voice out of my head as I crawled forward. I was getting closer.
“You know the person who hit him did actually stop for a moment…just a moment…he opened his car door and almost ran over to help, but then something stopped him. Did you know that?”
He’s lying Kathering. Keep moving.
“I was there. If I close my eyes, I can still see the whole thing. If that guy had helped instead of just driving away, maybe James would have survived and what I’ve had with you and Casey… all that would never have been.”
I was right in front of the pile of knives. I reached out and then he stomped on my hand. I felt bones break. He leaned down, grabbed me, and turned me over to look at him. He was crying.
“I still think it was destiny that brought us together, but I was wrong about you. You don’t have any place in our family. Me and Casey. I’m going to take her far away from here. She’s mine now.” Tears were pouring out of his eyes and he was trying to blink them away, but the tears wouldn’t stop.
“Son of a bitch! Stop it! Stop it!” He rubbed at his eyes with one hand. “She’s mine now!”
I brought my knee up as hard as I could between his legs and he dropped me to the floor. He fell to his knees right next to me. I could hear sirens outside.
I reached out and grabbed the largest knife. I raised it over my head, but before I could swing it down, he grabbed my wrist and started to squeeze. I felt my grip start to loosen and I was afraid that I was going to drop the knife. He started to laugh as the sirens were getting closer.
“Looks like it’s time we get things over with.”
I felt his body slam against mine, and at first I had no idea what had happened, but then Stephen began to scream and I could hear Feivel growling behind him.
Feivel had managed to fit his jaws around the back of Stephen’s neck and buried his teeth to the gums. He was pulling Stephen away from me; blood poured down either side of his throat.
I tightened my grip on the knife and I pushed it into Stephen’s stomach over and over and over again. Feivel eventually let go of Stephen, and as I continued to plunge the knife into the mushy mess I had made, my dog limped over and started to whimper.
As Stephen lay there gasping for breath, I stared at his eyes. They were staring back at me and he was no longer weeping. I felt crazy, but his eyes looked kind. They looked happy.
-
“How are you feeling now?” I remember the detective had this perfect voice. A Paul Winfield voice. Had the things he was about to tell me weren’t so terrible, I would probably only remember how beautiful that voice was.
“I can’t walk, but they’ve got me so drugged up that I don’t mind very much. I’m going to be able to go home tomorrow. Or…to my mother’s at least.”
“How’s your daughter doing?”
“She’s good. She’s staying with my mother.”
“I hear that hero dog is going to pull through.”
I smiled. Tears started coming up thinking of Feivel sitting somewhere without me while he was going through all this.
“He’s not going to be a hundred percent, but he’s going to have a good life. He deserves it.”
“Ok. Now for the unpleasant stuff. We finally got some answers on who this guy is. Was, excuse me. His name is Joshua Linder. He’s been keeping a small apartment only a mile away from your house for the last three years. It looks like he’s been watching you the whole time. All kinds of things all over his apartment.”
“Did he kill James?”
“No. He couldn't have. Up until three years ago he lived across the country from you. Even then, there was no way he was driving the car that killed your husband. He was legally blind.”
“What?”
“Not completely blind, but may as well have been. That is his connection to you, and to your late husband I’m afraid.”
“I don’t understand.”
“You said he knew things he shouldn’t have right?”
“Yes.”
“Where the spare key was, um… certain things you shared with your late husband, correct?”
“That’s right.”
“Katherine, there’s no easy way to say this, so I’m just going to say it. You are aware that your husband was an organ donor, were you not?”
“Yeah.”
“It seems that uh… Mr. Linder was the recipient of your husband’s corneas after your husband passed. Now how he found out about you, we have no idea. There’s some kind of phenomenon that’s called cellular memory that frankly I think is…”
He kept talking, but the only thing on my mind were Stephen’s eyes.
-
My little family of three moved far away from home. We now have a house next to my husband’s parents where Casey can get to know her father’s parents and Feivel can go on walks with me while I pull him in his wagon when he gets too tired. I try not to think too much of what happened, but I still have trouble sleeping.

I was watching the documentary about the satanisist killings of fall river (MGM documentary very new)
Spoiler
So it turned out Robin lied about there being a satan sect
Yet. Having been in situations like her and those women.
I know some men, are just evil. Like theyre not human.
Is Satan just a metaphor to make sense of Evil? Are some humans born evil? Do ppl not understand they hurt others or they like it even
What drives people to commit violence and rape?
Can we call those acts demonic? Satanic? Are they inspired by satan whispers ? Like theyre not human anymore
Or is that too simplyfying of human nature
Is the idea of human good a lie
And we all can be evil
Because everyone agree certain acts are wrong
Yet some ppl do it
As if the other human doesnt matter
Humanity ?
Many criminals have more humanity then some guys who go free to do what they want and get away w
Where do we place evil? In this world

“I know you’re awake…Katherine…Kaaaaatheriiiine…”
“Shut up.” I had been awake for a little while, just staring at the wall.
“I knew it.”
“Can you not sleep?” I rolled over and looked at him as I asked the question.
James was in his rocking chair in the corner of our bedroom right next to the window. The moon outside was illuminating his face.
“I’m ok. Just a lot on my mind.”
“Like what?” I did my best to sit up. I was almost at my due date and I was enormous. During the pregnancy I wasn’t quite as sensitive to his little issues that I normally was.
James suffered from severe bouts of anxiety and he would spend lots of nights just rocking in his chair, trying not to worry about things.
“I think we should get a dog.”
“What?”
“We should get a dog. Every kid should grow up with a dog.” He turned his head to look at me. Most of his face was in shadow, but his eyes were bright. He smiled at me.
“Ok. Is that it? That’s what’s keeping you up?”
“Yes. Oh, and I also love you.”
“I love you too.”
“And I farted.” I had never known James to end anything on any kind of sappy note, so he always had to say or do something childish to ruin the moment.
I loved him so much.
-
“He’s kind of gross.” There were so many dogs at the shelter, but my husband immediately went to the mangiest one. A large mutt with his tongue hanging limply out of the side of his mouth. The mousey brown fur looked like someone had teased it with a brush and sealed the deal with an entire can of hairspray, and he had a slight limp as it walked toward this strange new man making baby talk. I watched the dog cock its head from side to side like it understood what James was saying.
“He’s perfect.” I could tell that James was in love.
“Why him?”
“Well…every other little guy in here is so animated and vibrant. He’s…um…not.”
“He looks like an oversized mouse with bad hair.”
“That’s perfect!”
“What?”
“We can name him Feivel! Does Feivel like that name?! Who’s a bugaboo doggie?! Who’s da doggie?!” The dog started making inquisitive whines and that lazy tongue came to life and began to lick the strange man's fingers through the chain link fence.
Feivel came home with us, and for a month that dog never left my husband’s side.
-
“What happened?”
“Can you put me on speaker so Art can hear me?”
“Ok. You’re scaring me Katherine.” I was trying to hold it together. James’ parents had recently moved to the east coast, so I had no choice but to call them on the phone with the news. “Ok, you’re on speaker.”
“Ok. James… um… James had an accident. It was a hit and run. Someone hit him with a car while he was crossing the street and then just kept driving.”
“Oh my God! Is he alright?”
“He’s um…” I had been with James since our sophomore year in high school, but we had been friends since we were six. I had known his parents for almost just as long.
“He’s…he’s gone.”
“Oh my God…”
I had to make lots of phone calls that day. It was the hardest day of my life.
-
“Mommy needs to talk to you.”
Feivel had been pacing the house for three days. When he wasn’t pacing, he would just sit at the front door waiting for James to come home. He wouldn't sit with me, almost like he blamed me for James not being there.
“Come here. Feivel! Come here.” He finally gave in and walked over to the couch. I patted the cushion next to me and he jumped on the couch and sat down.
He grunted at me several times and when he was done voicing his frustrations, his tongue jutted out of the side of his mouth and just hung there.
I don’t know if it sounds stupid or not, but I had a conversation with him about what had happened to his Daddy and why he wasn’t with us anymore. I felt like it would have been cruel not to.
He stared at me through the whole story and when I was finished, there was a heavy silence between us that was eventually broken by a small cry from him before he put his head in my lap.
-
Three weeks later, I had Casey. The birth was rough and there were multiple issues. For a little bit there, I was afraid that I might lose her too. She had to stay in the hospital longer than I would have liked, but when I was finally able to bring her home, Feivel took to her instantly.
He was always next to her.
-
As the years went by, I made sure Casey knew every detail about her father. I would tell her stories and Feivel would always add something in his own language. I don’t know if he was backing up what I said or perhaps contradicting it, but I do know he was always happy to be included in the reminiscing.
Shortly after she turned four, Casey’s favorite pastime was drawing with her crayons. I had quite a few pictures up on our fridge of our little family in the midst of imagined adventures. She always drew James in with us. The way she always emphasized his balding head would make me smile.
I would BBQ on Friday nights because James had always done the same.
When we first moved in, he had built a huge grilling station out of brick and bought this ridiculously large grill that could almost fit an entire cow inside of it. James had said we would need it for the amount of children and grandchildren that we were going to have. We would sit in front of it every Friday night with a bottle of whiskey while he cooked.
Casey and I would sit at the same table and have juice while we made hot dogs. I thought it was important to keep some of our traditions alive for Casey.
In spite of losing James, we were happy. I started to adjust to a life without a partner, which was not a very easy thing to do since we had been a part of each other’s lives since we were both six years old.
-
Almost five years after I lost James, I met Stephen. I was a busy woman with a young daughter and up to that point, I had not even thought about dating. There was something different about Stephen though. I was interested in him from the first time we met.
Casey and I were playing in the park with Feivel one day and somehow we lost him. He just vanished. I looked for him for hours while my mom watched Casey, but I couldn’t find him. For three days I was beside myself and Casey was constantly in tears. Then, Stephen showed up on my doorstep holding our Feivel at the end of a leash.
A tall man with thick hair and trendy glasses wearing a flannel and jeans.
“Oh my God!”
“Hi. I uh…found him in the park down by the river.” I snatched him up and he started whimpering and shaking his butt back and forth. I completely ignored the man at my door. When Feivel had had enough of my pets, he ran inside to look for Casey.
“Thank you so much. Oh my God, you have no idea how much we missed him.” I was wiping tears from my eyes.
“Oh, I might have a clue.”
“Thank you.”
“No problem.”
As I was wiping my nose on the sleeve of my sweatshirt, I realized that the man standing at my door was gorgeous.
“Can I…let me give you some money or something. You have no idea how happy you just made my daughter.”
“No, that's ok. Just happy to help.”
“Thank you.”
There was something about the way he looked at me with his eyes. My stomach fluttered. I wanted to invite him in, and the fact that I wanted to do that upset me.
I thanked him. I didn’t even ask him for his name. I’ll admit that I even closed the door on him a little more abruptly than I meant to.
All three of us shared my bed that night. It was the best night’s sleep I’d had in years.
-
A couple weeks went by and then I saw him again, the man who had found Feivel. He was sitting in the park with his back against a tree, reading a book. Casey and I had been taking turns throwing a frisbee for Feivel, and I saw him out of the corner of my eye. I decided that I would thank him again and apologize for being so awkward.
As I walked closer, I took in every detail. I was sure he was a few years younger than I was and he looked very athletic. His glasses rested on the tip of his nose as he read from The Winter of Our Discontent; Steinbeck has always been my favorite author.
Feivel must have seen him just as I was about to say something because he reached the man before I did. I could hear Casey calling for me.
“Hold on honey. Give me a second.”
Feivel was all over the man and he was laughing at the writhing whining beast who was trying its best to lick every inch of his face.
“Feivel, don’t be rude.”
“No, it's fine. I’m glad he remembers me.”
“Yeah. Wow, he really remembers you.” Feivel was so excited that he started to whimper and expose his tummy. “Feivel! Have some self respect!”
The man stood up next to me. My stomach was fluttering again and I could not stop looking at his eyes.
“Hey, I have to apologize about…uh the way I kinda shut my door in your face.” He laughed.
“You don’t have to apologize.”
“Mommy?” Casey had run up behind me and was partially hiding herself behind my leg while she stared at the man. “Mommy?”
“This is my daughter Casey.”
“Hello Casey.”
“Hello.”
“My name’s Stephen.” Casey stayed behind my leg.
“It’s ok honey. Tell him your name.”
“I’m Casey and this is my mom. Her name is Katherine.”
“Well…you’re a very pretty girl and it’s very nice to meet you.” I noticed that his eyes started to tear up while he was looking at my Casey. He wiped his eyes and shook his head. He was clearly embarrassed. “I’m sorry. She just… reminds me of my niece. We lost her a few years ago.”
We talked for a while that day. Every time he looked over at Casey, I swore that he was on the verge of tears.
-
It didn’t take very long at all; I was hooked. Feivel was hooked. Eventually, even Casey was hooked.
I tried to take it slow. I didn’t want to date anyone. I wasn’t over James and I knew it, but I just wanted to be around this man and I honestly could not explain what it was at the time. I always wanted him at the house, so he was there all the time. I loved it when he looked at me.
For the most part, he was great, but there were some things that were off. There were things I should have paid more attention to, but again, there was something about him that made me feel like I needed him.
He would kiss me with his eyes open every time, and even though the way he kissed me was great, something about it still gave me the creeps. I would crack my eyes open sometimes in the hopes that he had stopped doing it. Every time I saw those eyes staring back at me, I felt uneasy. I had only ever been with James, so I thought maybe some guys just did that, even though all of my friends thought it was weird too.
He also did things when he would come over that would raise the hairs on the back of my neck. Maybe that description is a little too harsh for what I was thinking at the time, but it fits now.
He would move things around the house. The toilet paper would be folded in that terrible triangle every time. James used to do that. He would also randomly adjust my coffee cups in the cabinet so the handles all faced the same way. Again, something my James used to do.
I had no idea what he did for a living, he told me he was in construction, but I had no idea who he worked for. He had never invited me over to his house, nor did he ever talk about his family.
My friends told me that I needed to relax and just enjoy myself. I admit, for the most part he seemed like the almost perfect guy. It was almost like he knew everything about me.
-
It was three months before he stayed overnight. I had Casey stay over at my mother’s house because it didn’t feel right to have her there.
We tried to be intimate, but I felt dirty. He said it was fine. He stayed anyway.
In the middle of the night I rolled over and cracked my eyes open. He was in the rocking chair in the corner. The moon was illuminating his eyes while he looked out the window. I thought I was dreaming for a minute.
“I know you’re awake…Katherine…Katherine?”
I didn’t say anything. I pretended to sleep. He turned his face to me and smiled. His eyes were so wide and bright.
“Katherine?”
I never went back to sleep that night. I just laid there for a while going back and forth from feeling like I was betraying my husband to feeling like I was an idiot who should just enjoy having a relationship with someone.
Around four in the morning, I had finally begun to drift off to sleep, but Stephen started making noises.
I rolled over and realized that his eyes were wide open. I was going to say something, but he was asleep. I waved my hand in front of his face to make sure.
He began to grunt and his body would shake every now and then. He was having a bad dream and his open eyes began darting back and forth.
“Get out of my head…” He whispered it twice. “Fuck you…out of my head…Mine now…”
It was too much to take. I quietly slid off of the bed and backed my way out of the room. Just as I made it to my door, his eyes moved and focused on me. He was still asleep, but it was like his eyes were watching me just the same.
I walked downstairs. He continued to talk in his sleep for over an hour. I was pretty sure right then that I had to break it off, or at least really slow down. I just didn’t feel right. And to be honest, I was a little creeped out.
-
I was drinking my coffee in the kitchen and thinking about what I was going to say when something caught my eye. Casey’s pictures of our family on the fridge looked different.I got up and took a closer look. James had been changed in every picture. He didn’t have short hair anymore, it was full and he was also wearing glasses. My heart skipped a beat and I felt a terrible lump in my throat. I wondered what this man had said to my daughter to convince her to remove her father from the pictures. I was done.
A few minutes later, he came downstairs in a rush. He was wearing a black Flogging Molly t-shirt. James’ favorite shirt.
“What are you doing?”
“Good morning! I forgot to turn on the alarm! I’m going to be late for work!”
“Stephen, why are you wearing that shirt?”
“I found it in your closet.”
“But why are you wearing it?”
“Well in case you forgot, I ripped the one I was wearing last night.”
“That’s my husband’s shirt.”
“Oh come on, he’s not going to be wearing it anytime soon. I gotta go, I’ll see you after work.” He leaned in for a kiss, but I backed away. “What’s the matter?”
“I don’t think this is going to work out.”
“What?”
“I think we need to take a break.”
“Over a t-shirt?”
“There’s…there’s a lot of things Stephen.”
“Are you being fucking serious with me right now?” His voice raised, something I had not yet experienced with him. Something in my head told me to back away from him, so I did. I backed right up against the counter within reach of my knives. It made me feel better.
“I think so.”
“But I don’t want to do that. Tell me what I did and I’ll fix it. I’ll take off the shirt. Katherine…please.” I looked right into his eyes. I thought maybe I was overreacting, but the pictures, messing with my daughter to erase her father, that was the breaking point.
“Please leave.”
The kindness in his face fell away to an ugliness that made me start to tremble. He noticed it. A smile slowly started to rise and it looked like he was going to take a step closer. I rested my hand on the counter behind me, inches from the knife block. He halted and stood still.
“Feivel!” My dog ran into the kitchen at the sound of my voice and looked back and forth between us. I could tell that he sensed the tension. Feivel walked over to my side and just looked back at Stephen without making a sound.
“Are you going to sick the dog on me? Are you crazy or something?”
“Stephen, I just want you to leave.”
“I thought I did everything right.” He let out a sigh. “I had all the answers. I know everything about you and I still can’t make it work. This cannot be my fault…it’s not…it’s your fault! Why are you doing this?!”
“Leave. Now.”
“Ok…I just…” He started laughing and looked down. He tapped my husband's shirt. “Well…shit… I tried to fuck Katherine, and all I got was this lousy tshirt…is that how this going to end?” He just stared at me. I wouldn’t answer him. “I don’t think so. You’re going to change your mind.” He turned and walked out of the door, slamming it behind him.
After he left, I locked all of the doors and called my mother. I told her what happened and not to take Casey to daycare. I told her that I would be able to pick her up in just a little bit. I called all my friends and let them know what happened. I basically wanted to hear other people tell me that Stephen was nuts and in the event that something happened to me, I wanted people to know where to look first.
I ripped all of Casey’s drawings off of the fridge and crumpled them up and threw them away.
I walked back upstairs to get dressed and I noticed other things.
I had only kept a few clothes that belonged to my husband and some of them were missing. I had a small jewelry box on the bathroom counter, and most of the rings and necklaces that James had given me were also missing. I walked through the house and began to notice random little things were missing here and there and the only thing they all had in common were that they were gifts given to me by James.
-
Before I picked up Casey at my mother’s, I called the police to see if anything could be done, even though I was pretty sure that I knew the answer. Other than being a creep and a thief, Stephen actually hadn’t done anything. There was nothing the police could do.
I took Casey to the park to explain to her why Stephen wouldn’t be around anymore. Feivel was sitting next to her in the backseat. I started by asking her about her drawings.
“I didn’t change them.”
“Casey, honey, I saw them this morning. They’re changed. You changed the way daddy looks.”
“But I didn’t mommy. I wouldn’t do that. Maybe Stephen did it.”
“You think Stephen took your crayons and changed your drawings?”
“Maybe. He thought he was going to be my new daddy anyway, so maybe he thought it was a good idea.”
“Wait. Who said he was going to be your new daddy?”
“He did. He said it lots.”
When we got to the park, I made sure Casey stayed right next to me. We started throwing the frisbee down by the river so Feivel could play in the water if he wanted. I asked her some more questions about Stephen and anything else he might have said to her. It didn’t sound like he had said much more.
We were about to leave when Casey started waving at something.
“Look Mommy, it’s Stephen!”
He was standing on the other side of the river, and he was waving back to us. He was wearing a button up shirt and a pair of jeans that both belonged to my husband. He was smiling at me.
“Mommy?”
“Yes?”
“Are you mad at Stephen or something?”
“Yes honey. I don’t think we’re going to be talking to Stephen anymore. I think he needs to go away.” I reached down and scooped up my daughter and began to walk back toward our car.
“We’re going home. Come on Feivel! Feivel?” My dog had been staring at Stephen and he still hadn’t moved. “Feivel, come!”
Stephen whistled and that was enough for Feivel. He jumped into the river and began swimming toward the other side. I called after him over and over, but he eventually made it to the other side and ran over to Stephen. He gave me one last wave before he reached down and clipped a leash onto Feivel’s collar. He turned around and started to walk away.
I ran back to the car and put Casey in her car seat as fast as I could and I drove to the parking lot on the other side of the river, but by the time I got there, he was gone with our dog.
-
I filled out a report with the police and tried to get a restraining order.
“Ok, so here’s the problem. You said his name was Stephen Tasavo?”
“That’s right.”
“Ok look. This is not going to make you feel any better, but this man doesn’t exist.”
“What?!”
“He gave you a false name, Miss. Couldn’t find anybody by that name fitting his description. You got him on social media anywhere? Does he have any friends?”
“I…I don’t know. I don’t have any of that crap. Social media I mean. I guess I just…never asked him about any of it. We’ve only been seeing each other for a few months.”
“Well, from the pictures you took on your phone, we know what he looks like. We’re going to keep an eye out for him, whoever he is. I suggest you keep your doors locked and inform the people at your daughter’s school. If there’s anywhere else you can go, I don’t think that would be a bad idea.”
I went home that night anyway. Casey was a mess after Stephen took Feivel and I thought that it would be a mistake if I didn’t give her some sense of normalcy. I had four friends stay with me that night.
-
A month later I got a call from a number that I didn’t recognize.
“Hello?”
“Don’t hang up the phone Katherine. Feivel really wants to hear your voice.”
“You sick fuck! Give me back my dog!” He was quiet for a moment.
“I've got you on speaker and you’re saying nasty things like that. He can hear everything you’re saying. Can’t you?! Can’t you?! Who’s a bugaboo doggie?! Who’s da doggie?!”
“Stephen…I’ll do whatever you want…please just give him back to me.”
“Come on Katherine. I know you know that’s not my name.”
“What is your name?”
“You know, I thought I had to become someone else to be with you. But I don’t think so. I’m going to like you getting to know the real me.”
“Please just give me my dog.”
“I’m going to make you see that it was destiny that your husband died. I’m going to make you see that his death was what it took to bring us together.”
“You son of a bitch!”
“Anyway, I’ll see you soon.” He hung up the phone.
I called the police, and after that night, I didn’t hear anything from Stephen for two months. Two months of looking over my shoulder. Two months of waiting.
I bought a gun. I kept it in the drawer of my bedside table. I wasn’t taking any chances.
-
I woke up with a start in the middle of the night and I heard the sound of muffled whining. I sat up in bed and looked around my bedroom before I grabbed the gun and got up. I walked to my window and noticed that it was slightly open. I looked down into the backyard.
Smoke was pouring out from underneath the closed lid on the grill. It looked like something was tied around the handles in order to keep it shut. I ran downstairs to the patio door. I opened it and held the gun in front of me. The smell of something burning was making me sick to my stomach. Something was crying out inside of the grill, frantically trying to get out. My heart sank as I realized that it was Feivel’s collar tied around the handle.
I screamed and grabbed the hose and turned it on. I lunged for the lid of the grill and I burned my hands as I tore away the collar from the handles.
I threw the top to the grill open and sprayed the hose inside. Feivel leapt out of the grill and down onto the brick patio. I soaked him with the hose. A belt had been tied around his muzzle. I ripped it off of his face and kept the water on him.
I turned to look back at the house. I didn’t want to leave him, but I realized that I had left my phone upstairs. I opened my mouth to scream for help, but then I had a hard time making any sound when I saw what was on the patio table. There was a bottle of whiskey on it with two glasses that had already been poured. There was a note on the table.
“It’s Friday Night! Time to BBQ!”
There was also something else on the table. A small fake rock. James and I had always kept it hidden amongst the other rocks in the backyard.It had a small compartment on the underside where we kept a spare key to our house. Stephen was in our house.
I looked back down to Feivel. I was left with the awful decision of having to leave my dog. He was gasping for air, but he was still alive. I had to get to Casey to make sure she was safe.
“Feivel, I’m sorry!” I left the hose laying across him and I ran back inside.
As I ran up the stairs, I saw that Casey’s door was closed and as I reached out for the knob, I heard a familiar noise coming from my room. The sound of a rocking chair. I cracked open Casey’s door and I could see that she was still asleep in her bed.
“Kaaaatheriiiiine…”
I closed the door and held the gun in front of me as I walked into my room.
The man I knew as Stephen was rocking in my husband's chair, wearing my husband’s clothes, and holding a house key that only myself and my husband knew about.
“I’ve missed you so much.” I raised the gun without saying a word. My hand was shaking. He was smiling and rocking back and forth. “You’re not going to shoot me.”
“Goodbye Stephen.” I pulled the trigger and nothing happened but a dry snap. I pulled the trigger again, but nothing happened.
“If you held that thing more often, you could probably tell that it’s just a little heavier when it has bullets in it.”
I lunged for my bedside table and pulled the drawer open. The small box of bullets was gone.
“I unloaded it while you were asleep.” He stood up. I ran for Casey’s door, but he caught me before I could open it. I felt his hand go over my mouth and he picked me up by my shoulders. I struggled as he carried me closer to the top of the stairs.
“I’ve watched you sleep for so many nights now, just wondering how I could get you back. But I think there might not be any saving of what we had.” He hit me across the face and threw me down the stairs.
I heard my ankles snap when I hit the floor, and I screamed. His footsteps were quiet as he started walking down the stairs.
“We could have had a life together. I really wanted that. I even put something on the grill, but then you went and ruined that too.”
“Mommy?!” Casey had run out of her bedroom and was at the top of the stairs looking down on us. Stephen was just a few steps away from me. I started to crawl along the floor toward the kitchen.
“Go back to your room Casey. You’re mother and I are fighting.”
“Casey! Get Mommy’s phone and call for help!” I screamed, as I pulled myself along the floor and into the kitchen. All I could think of was getting to the block of knives.
“Where do you think you're going off to? Wait, I know…”
Stephen ran around me and to the kitchen counter. He picked up the block of knives and spilled them on the floor. “Come and get ‘em Katherine.”
He walked back over and stood over me while I crawled toward the knives. He was laughing.
“To think, if someone hadn’t killed your husband, none of this would have happened.”
I tried to shut his voice out of my head as I crawled forward. I was getting closer.
“You know the person who hit him did actually stop for a moment…just a moment…he opened his car door and almost ran over to help, but then something stopped him. Did you know that?”
He’s lying Kathering. Keep moving.
“I was there. If I close my eyes, I can still see the whole thing. If that guy had helped instead of just driving away, maybe James would have survived and what I’ve had with you and Casey… all that would never have been.”
I was right in front of the pile of knives. I reached out and then he stomped on my hand. I felt bones break. He leaned down, grabbed me, and turned me over to look at him. He was crying.
“I still think it was destiny that brought us together, but I was wrong about you. You don’t have any place in our family. Me and Casey. I’m going to take her far away from here. She’s mine now.” Tears were pouring out of his eyes and he was trying to blink them away, but the tears wouldn’t stop.
“Son of a bitch! Stop it! Stop it!” He rubbed at his eyes with one hand. “She’s mine now!”
I brought my knee up as hard as I could between his legs and he dropped me to the floor. He fell to his knees right next to me. I could hear sirens outside.
I reached out and grabbed the largest knife. I raised it over my head, but before I could swing it down, he grabbed my wrist and started to squeeze. I felt my grip start to loosen and I was afraid that I was going to drop the knife. He started to laugh as the sirens were getting closer.
“Looks like it’s time we get things over with.”
I felt his body slam against mine, and at first I had no idea what had happened, but then Stephen began to scream and I could hear Feivel growling behind him.
Feivel had managed to fit his jaws around the back of Stephen’s neck and buried his teeth to the gums. He was pulling Stephen away from me; blood poured down either side of his throat.
I tightened my grip on the knife and I pushed it into Stephen’s stomach over and over and over again. Feivel eventually let go of Stephen, and as I continued to plunge the knife into the mushy mess I had made, my dog limped over and started to whimper.
As Stephen lay there gasping for breath, I stared at his eyes. They were staring back at me and he was no longer weeping. I felt crazy, but his eyes looked kind. They looked happy.
-
“How are you feeling now?” I remember the detective had this perfect voice. A Paul Winfield voice. Had the things he was about to tell me weren’t so terrible, I would probably only remember how beautiful that voice was.
“I can’t walk, but they’ve got me so drugged up that I don’t mind very much. I’m going to be able to go home tomorrow. Or…to my mother’s at least.”
“How’s your daughter doing?”
“She’s good. She’s staying with my mother.”
“I hear that hero dog is going to pull through.”
I smiled. Tears started coming up thinking of Feivel sitting somewhere without me while he was going through all this.
“He’s not going to be a hundred percent, but he’s going to have a good life. He deserves it.”
“Ok. Now for the unpleasant stuff. We finally got some answers on who this guy is. Was, excuse me. His name is Joshua Linder. He’s been keeping a small apartment only a mile away from your house for the last three years. It looks like he’s been watching you the whole time. All kinds of things all over his apartment.”
“Did he kill James?”
“No. He couldn't have. Up until three years ago he lived across the country from you. Even then, there was no way he was driving the car that killed your husband. He was legally blind.”
“What?”
“Not completely blind, but may as well have been. That is his connection to you, and to your late husband I’m afraid.”
“I don’t understand.”
“You said he knew things he shouldn’t have right?”
“Yes.”
“Where the spare key was, um… certain things you shared with your late husband, correct?”
“That’s right.”
“Katherine, there’s no easy way to say this, so I’m just going to say it. You are aware that your husband was an organ donor, were you not?”
“Yeah.”
“It seems that uh… Mr. Linder was the recipient of your husband’s corneas after your husband passed. Now how he found out about you, we have no idea. There’s some kind of phenomenon that’s called cellular memory that frankly I think is…”
He kept talking, but the only thing on my mind were Stephen’s eyes.
-
My little family of three moved far away from home. We now have a house next to my husband’s parents where Casey can get to know her father’s parents and Feivel can go on walks with me while I pull him in his wagon when he gets too tired. I try not to think too much of what happened, but I still have trouble sleeping.