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Key Bank, whatcha gonna do, it's up to you?
Somebody once told me that when someone does you good, you'll tell a couple of people. They also said when someone does you wrong you'll tell a hundred. The good thing about being a blogger is I can reach out and spread the good word to a lot more than a hundred people :)…which leads me perfectly into the saga of the Key Club winner.
Rockpile Ranter, known nationally as a loyal Colorado Rockies and Denver Nugget fan. Today is a sad day. I never thought winning a prize could turn out to be such an experience.
The Denver Nuggets and Key Bank have let one of they're most loyal fans and bloggers down.
I'll give you a quick refresher.
I received an email from the
Nuggets Rep associated somehow with the Denver Nuggets telling me I've won the monthly Key Bank Key Club drawing.
2. I was informed that I had won dinner for myself and four guests at the Ridgeline Club at the Pepsi Center.
I also was told that had I won 5 tickets to the game and a Q and A session with a Nuggets Rep. I was really happy. The entire prize was valued at $800.00 so the e-mail stated. It also said I would have to sign an Affidavit of Eligibility because of the value of the prize.
3. I hopped online to check out the menu for the Ridgeline Club. It was a limited menu and I couldn't eat anything on it.
4. I informed the Nuggets Rep about my situation and asked if I possibly could get an autographed Melo or Billups jersey instead of the dinner, and if possible a few tickets anywhere.
Am I out of line here? The dinner is valued at 304.00 according to "their" breakdown.
That's about what a "REAL" NBA jersey not a cheap REPLICA jersey autographed by Billups would be worth. That's a fair swap in my eyes. The original prize included five club level tickets. All I asked for was a couple of seats anywhere in the Pepsi Center.
To make a long story short (If you want to read the original emails go back a few entries).
If I refused the $800.00 prize and took the substitute prize, it would be the REPLICA Billups jersey and that's it, no tickets to the game on the 20th, or any game.
I thought about it and decided an autographed Billups jersey would be cool and I wouldn't have to claim that on my taxes. So I wrote Nuggets Rep back and said I would like to get the autographed jersey instead. I asked if I could have it in white and size 52, my size.
Guess what? Here's what they responded with:
I actually already have the jersey to send you. It's an alternative road jersey replica jersey, size XL. Thanks!
Huh, what do you mean XL? Are you telling me that all I get out of this whole $800.00 prize package is a Billups jersey that won't even fit me? To add insult to injury, it's not a REAL jersey. Oh and it's not signed, here's what she said about that:
I cannot take your jersey to have it signed by Chauncey Billups. We do not have access to the Nuggets Players. We receive all our autographed merchandise from Basketball Operations at the beginning of the season and cannot submit personal requests.
Let me just say, I don't recognize the word "cannot"….. I prefer can't.
If the jersey arrived autographed by Billups, the size wouldn't matter because I would just frame it. But I would still want it to be a REAL jersey not a REPLICA jersey.
So in my eyes, I feel like I'm being punished and given a raw deal because of my weird diet.
Let me tell you my friends, this whole deal sucks. Nuggets, I bragged you up even when you didn't deserve it last year.
I watch every game I can, and I attend about 10-15 games a year.
I've already been to eight games this season.
It's day seven for me without a cigarette. I'm making it y'all. Today (other than this Key Bank headache), has been my best day so far.
In the end it's not the Nuggets fault. It will fall totally on Key Bank with whom I was fond of until this fiasco.
I'll take my lumps but never play me for a chump. As always, I look for a happy ending to all of this. If Key Bank steps up to the plate on this one I'll give them serious props.
But if they drop the ball, well you all know what's next. Hope I don't have to go there…
UPDATE: I just received this email from the Nuggets Rep:
KeyBank has your information and the emails you've sent to me. They will contact you directly. The jersey is autographed.
Wow, well that answers that question, sort of.
Now is this the REPLICA jersey we're talking about or the REAL one. Because I priced the particular jersey that you want to give to me and it cost 45 dollars on the Nuggets website because its a REPLICA…REPLICA = NOT REAL in case you don't understand Jersey lingo.
Here's a link to the: Nuggets jersey page. Check out the prices on the replica jerseys. Sound to me like they're getting off really easy. NBA replica jerseys are just plain crap. They sell them at Wal-Mart. Why you wanna play the Ranter like a chump?
$45 vs $800, come on and admit it Key Bank, even you've got to think that's kind of cheap??
I want all of you to know I'm just trying to get what I think is fair, wouldn't you. I just want to feel like a winner and go see my favorite team play a basketball game?
Key Bank, I trust you'll do the right thing here. I'll be at game on Tuesday either way, but I'd prefer it be "on your dime".
Jimmy' Curran's over at Baseball,The Yankees, and Life… has a great idea of dedicating your blog ranking to a player with that particular number. I dedicate my 8th place ranking to #17 Todd Helton. Just take the eight and add the five times he was an All-Star (2000-04) and the four times he won the Silver Slugger award (2000-03 the most out of all MLB first basemen). That adds up to 17. Don't you love my math🙂
Here's a link to my: Nuggets autographs
18 Comments
D — CONGRATS! You can take on "city hall" and win! Good luck getting a "real" jersey. And good work on not smoking. Keep us updated on both items!
JULIA-Thanks for all your daily support. All of you are my non-smoking support chain and it's really helping…D
Good luck with the smoking. My parents have been trying to quit for years. It's tough, but with support, you can do it! I hope your jersey is authentic because, although an autographed jersey is awesome, it's more awesome when it's worth more! Keep us updated!
Hey D,
I'm really glad today is going better with the quitting.
I must say I'm impressed and I've learned something through your ordeal with Key Bank. I would have just said "Oh well, there's nothing I can do" but you've shown that it's worth taking the time to see if things can be worked out. I hope they come through.
R-LUV, Thanks, the reason I'm pushing this is that I don't feel that I'm being unreasonable and neither does anyone else I've talked to for that matter. Key Bank is cool, I believe they'll make the right move here…Banks could use some good karma nowadays…D
First off,
Key Bank is really short cutting you! They should really try and accommodate you fairly. You should take 'em on!
Also, thank you for adding me to your links list!🙂. I'm truly honored lol!
Love the blog and best of luck with quitting smoking…but sorry, did I miss something? DO YOU WANT SOME CHEESE WITH ALL THE WHINE?!?
Let's be fair. I think the Nuggets have tried to be as accommodating as possible…why haven't you asked Mr. Kroenke for part ownership of the team yet? It seems as if you are acting like a spoiled little brat who won't be happy until he gets what he EXACTLY wants. You won a contest and you couldn't accept the entire prize because of your dietary constraints, and that's all their fault? It's not like they said tough luck, take it or leave it. It seems to me that they've tried to work with you, but you are stuck on AUTHENTIC jersey and some EXTRA tickets. I am serious, why not ask them for $800 worth of part ownership of the team? C'mon, sometimes you just need to be realistic on what folks can do and I think you are being WAY too demanding. I would love to win anything! I think you should be grateful that you are a winner, but instead, you complain that the Nuggets and KeyBank have wronged you. If only some of us less fortunate had it so easy. Some fan you are…I wish REAL fans like myself who would die to have anything signed by a Nuggets player would have won instead of you. I apologize for the rant, but I just think you are WAY out of line…and that's from someone who normally sees eye to eye with you, especially when it comes to the Rox.
TRENT-Welcome to the Rant, I thought about just erasing your comment but that's not really my style. You don't know me well enough to make a generalized statement like that. Maybe I've had problems everywhere I go with my diet and this was the last straw. If you were a real fan instead of whining how you never get anything autographed you might take the time to show up early, or stay late. You have to work to get player autographs. You are entitled to your opinion. Ok Trent you won a polo shirt, a nice dinner and tickets to a Broadway Show. You are allergic to what they are serving for dinner. So as a replacement you get a knock off polo shirt (made in Korea), a McDonalds coupon and tickets to a Movie. Are you happy? Was that fair? Should you be given a sub-par prize because your allergic to the dinner they offered you. All you have to do Trent is change the scenario around to fit your situation and then you might feel me. In my eyes have been wronged and I don't play that way. Don't you ever accuse me of not being a real fan. If I wasn't a real fan I would have gave up two weeks ago. It's easy to judge and make comments when it isn't you, Trent, I'm not sure, but is it possible you work for the Denver Nuggets or Key Bank? Just throwing that out there…D
Never back down from what you believe is right. If you do then ask yourself "did you really believe in it in the first place"?…I believe…D
Hey D,
Well, seems to me that if you have to shell out a chunk of change (ie taxes) to "win" a prize, that you should get something you can actually use. For example, what if you won tickets to a game but are a season ticket holder? Not much of a prize there. Maybe Key Bank could have multiple choices when you win. I also understand how frustrating it would be to win something and then find out that not only do you have to pay taxes on it but that you can't even use a significant part of it. Really takes the enjoyment out of winning.
(Hope the quitting is going easier today. )
Thank you R-Luv, that's exactly as I see it..I appreciate you having my back on this one…D
Congrats and good luck with the smoking thing. But really, your blogging about this whole prize thing is kinda pathetic. You won a prize, but because of your diet, couldn't accept it. I get that, but did you stop to think that maybe the prize couldn't be changed? Or, how about you suck it up and let the other 4 people that could come with you enjoy it. I have dietary restraints too, and it sucks, but I don't let it affect other people. You won a great prize that could be awesome to share with others, but it kinda sounds like you're being selfish. And now you're scoffing at getting a signed jersey. If you're as big of a fan as you say, and find it so easy to get autographs, then it shouldn't be a big deal to you. Bring your own jersey (I'm sure oyu ahve one) to the game to get signed. Tell you what though, go to the upper deck and ask a 12 year old kid how he would feel about a free autographed jersey. Actually, don't even ask about the jersey, my guess is the autograph alone would make that kids day. I get that it's frustrating to you, but I don't think it's really fair to call out this Jessica chick that you're dealing with at the Nuggets either. My guess is she's doing all she can, but doesn't really have the ability to go into the locker room and take an authentic jersey that you're so hard up about. My take on this whole thing is just be happy about what you've got – I'm sure there are plenty of other people that would gladly take it.
NUGSFAN-Man I respect what your saying. But you don't exactly know all of the story(there's more I haven't told you). First off, I was told that the jersey couldn't be autographed. I wrote back and said that's not true and that I know better, guess what? ..The next email I received informed the jersey would be autographed. So which is it, can it be autographed or not? I was told it couldn't be, but apparently it can as I proved to you.
Listen you can throw a guilt trip at me anyway you want, but as I mentioned above I feel I'm in the right with this and I don't back down until it's physically impossible for me to. I respect your opinion brotha. Additionally I never said it was easy to get Nuggets autographs, please show me where I stated that? Just for the record, the only Nuggets jersey I have is an Allen Iverson jersey. I'm taking care of the next winner who may have the same diet issues I do…D
Ok this issue has been put to rest. The final result is I accepted the XL Jersey (They managed to get Chauncey to sign it). The prize package that I gave up will be given to another winner so it WILL get used. I'm not complaining at the end result. No the jersey won't fit me, but it's autographed and for hanging on the wall it will be just fine.
What did I learn from all of this?
1. Always stand your ground, even when others mock you.
2. Nothing is set in stone, you can always work out a deal.
3. Banks are stingy as F*ck…D
D- Congrats on getting the autographed jersey! And the way Chauncey has been playing, even through sickness, has been incredible! The guy's a machine. Before you know it, people are going to be saying Carmelo… who? Actually, probably not. But if anyone's a brat, I definitely think it's Melo. Oh, I'm mean. But I'm glad you fought for exactly what you wanted and while you may not have gotten it exact, good for you for getting it. And day seven? Hell yeah! Keep up the kicking face and taking names!
EMILY-Thank you for those kind words. For about a half of a second I was beginning to question my decision.
There is so much talent on this team, I believe they could be contenders without Melo. Billups has been waiting for his chance to shine and getting him back in Denver was a well thought out trade. What's up with the suits with the huge pockets in the front that Melo wears when he's injured and warming the bench? Doesn't anyone on the Nuggets have the guts to tell him how that suit really looks on him? No matter what they try and tell me Melo's not the face of this Nuggets team, Billups is.
I know you remember the day, not so long ago when things like this were done and you got what you wanted because fan satisfaction mattered to the owners and players.
The fact that they can not even get a basketball operations person or even a Nuggets charity staffer to get this done seems a bit odd. But then again, I have never dealt with a basketball team or the players.
Glad to see they are at least trying to get this resolved and want you to feel satisfied with the result. If not, the Rant will be far greater than they ever imagined. It is not like the fans are spoiled and given everything in the world by the major sports leagues in the US. Giving back to the community and the public used to be a great personality trait. Now it is becoming an afterthought.
Grumble, rant and rave until you are satisfied. Because you are taking the tax hit, you would think they would substitute without a problem since they will probably benefit somewhere down the line. I hope this saga ends with you sipping a nice cold beverage while wearing a autographed jersey in the Pepsi center the day before you put the jersey under glass.
Rays Renegade
RAYS RENEGADE- You summized my whole arguement into two paragraphs and said it better than I did. Thanks for agreeing with me on this one brotha…I'll post a picture when the jersey arrives at my house with me holding a cold Colorado microbrew, as I watch the game from home…D


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subset: commoncrawl


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In many ways, Scouting is unique among the charities and other youth organizations of the world. In at least one way, however, Scouting is no different from others - if it is to grow and serve more youth and more communities each year, it must find a way to financially support its long-term mission.
Scouting's mission in America began in 1910. In fact, we are about to celebrate our 100th anniversary of service to America and its youth. Local councils continue to be primarily responsible for raising financial support for their programs, facilities, and community initiatives. But the BSA Foundation has been established to attract additional funds for both long and short range support of operating, capital, and endowment needs.
Gifts to the Foundation may be specifically designated or given for general Scouting purposes, as the donor chooses. Some donors make gifts to the Foundation in support of specific local councils.
Other donors, however, make gifts to the Foundation because it is a convenient way to make one gift to be distributed among several Scouting entities, whether in one geographic area, throughout a state, across the country, or around the world. These gifts are often made by donors who have been active in more than one council, or want to support a specific part of Scouting such as endowment, camperships, and world jamboree needs, or whatever a donor wants to support. Again, these gifts may be used to support Scouting internationally as well as locally.
It is also possible for a donor to make an undesignated gift to the Foundation and allow the Foundation to distribute it to councils and programs of its choice. Undesignated or discretionary funds within the Foundation may then be distributed directly to councils with specific needs or innovative programs for which the councils have not received adequate funding.
Before the Foundation was created, donors who wanted to establish a charitable trust or make a major gift involving a trustee or custodianship often had to use a bank or trust company. Sometimes, the cost of setting up and administering the gift was prohibitively expensive.
The BSA Foundation, however, can serve as trustee for a wide variety of charitable gifts benefitting Scouting at what we believe are competitive rates. All gifts given to the Foundation to fund charitable trusts are currently handled by State Street Bank in Boston.The BSA Foundation currently provides administraative services for charitable gifts benefitting Scouting such as:
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If appropriate for the donor's circumstances, the Foundation will provide - free of charge and confidentially - sample documents and standard available tax benefits for certain types of gifts. It is recommended that the donor share these materials with their own tax advisor, who must review these estimated benefits in light of the donor's particular circumstances, and the donor's own attorney must prepare the necessary documents.
Many donors may want to make a large gift supporting worthwhile charities other than Scouting. The Foundation will permit donors to name other qualified charities in addition to the Foundation as beneficiaries of a gift or trust. This can greatly reduce the time and expense of making separate gifts to each charity.
The BSA Foundation actively seeks financial support from corporations and other foundations that will not - or cannot - support Scouting at the local council level, but may give to organizations like the BSA Foundation that can receive, apply, and distribute funds across the country.
The opportunity to expand our funding options to corporations and foundations that could not otherwise support Scouting is a promising and exciting part of what the Foundation can do for councils. It is also a major source of discretionary funds for the Foundation to apply to the areas of Scouting - and the needs of the youth we serve - that the Foundation Board feels would benefit the most from these funds.
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Appropriate recognition unique to the Foundation will be given to those who support it. Foundation donors are also listed in the Foundation's Annual Report, unless otherwise requested.
Donors interested in receiving information about a specific gift they are considering to the Foundation, or with questions about the Foundation, can call 800-BSA-INFO, or fax us at 972-580-7823, or e-mail Colin V. French, Executive Director, at firstname.lastname@example.com. Just as Scouting has served as the foundation for so many people who seek traditional family values, training in ethical decision-making, and moral responsibility, the BSA Foundation similarly serves as the foundation for Scouting's financial future - coast to coast and nation and nation. Find out more about it today.


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UPB Student Inaugural Ball
Thu, 14 Mar 2013 8:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Location: Festival Ballroom
Time: 8:00-10:00pm
This event is for JMU students. Tickets Required.
The Inaugural Ball is opportunity for students to dress up and celebrate the inauguration of the sixth president of JMU.
Please check back for additional details for this event.


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There is a quaint, old-fashioned sign outside of the arched stone gate at the entrance to the Harbor Point Association that reads "AUTOMOBILES NOT ALLOWED."
Residents and guests drive up and are met by a horse and buggy, which takes them past the guardhouse and the rest of the way to their cottage on the nearly-mile-long fingerlike peninsula that stretches into Little Traverse Bay, south of Harbor Springs.
This is no ordinary gated community. And it is not the typical setting for an armed standoff with police.
But that's exactly what happened here in June, when an increasingly unstable resident, David Cornell Whitlow, greeted police with a machete, said he could kill an officer by throwing a knife at him, and threatened to blow up his cottage after he filled it with natural gas from a stove.
Whitlow was taken by surprise during the standoff, tasered and arrested. He now sits in the Emmet County jail awaiting an examination to determine if he is competent to stand trial on the dozen felony charges he faces stemming from the incident.
Peace and serenity at Harbor Point were interrupted June 12, prompting association security to call 911 just after noon. They said Whitlow, 55, was outside of his cottage walking around with a black object they could not identify. Whitlow had recently exhibited erratic behavior that caused the association to exercise their authority to inspect Whitlow's cottage. They were concerned.
A day earlier, police had been out to the cottage on what police call a "civil assist."
Staff at Harbor Point needed to serve Whitlow with a notice that they intended to inspect his home. They asked for help from police because they feared for their safety. A message left for comment with the Harbor Point Association was not returned.
When police showed up, according to police reports, Whitlow told them that any effort to enter his property would be met with force.
Now, police were asked back for a second day in a row. This time, because of Whitlow's hostility, they decided more officers were warranted.
Deputies from the Emmet County Sheriff's Office and officers from the Harbor Springs Police staged at the police department in Harbor Springs that afternoon and came up with a plan.
Police quietly surrounded Cottage 54, where Whitlow lived. Det./Sgt. J. L. Sumpter of the sheriff's department contacted Whitlow by telephone and Whitlow said he didn't want any police coming to his house.
Soon Whitlow made a hostile move -- police said he threw an exploding firework in the direction of officers, a move that was taken as an attempt to scare police. It landed around 35 feet from where some officers were positioned.
The firework in question would have been illegal in Michigan last year but is legal this year, but the fact it was used to terrorize police led to one of the felony charges against Whitlow, Sheriff Peter Wallin said.
The police tried for around an hour to get Whitlow to come out peacefully.
Sgt. Sumpter had several phone conversations with the suspect that ended with Whitlow hanging up. In one call, he attempted to convince Whitlow to come out, apparently after Whitlow insulted him and challenged the officer to a fight.
In a police video filmed during the standoff, Sumpter's half of the phone call is audible.
The conversation began with a pleasantsounding request from Sumpter: "Hey, David, do you mind coming out to the front and talking to me for a minute? I'll just tell you where we're at and you can tell us where you're at and we can figure things out."
Whitlow turned down that invitation.
In another call minutes later, Whitlow apparently taunted the detective.
"Hey David, we're going to stay here all day until I get to talk to you, you know that, right?" Sumpter said.
Whitlow said something and Sumpter responded: "Alright, I'll meet you there. I'll meet you there right now, I'll take that bet," Sumpter said.
Whitlow said something, and the detective responded: "I don't need a weapon. I'll go hand-to-hand with you. Right on the beach. Let's go."
More back-and-forth followed. "Right now. I'll meet you there. Alright?
Let's go. I'm dropping my gun. Alright. Two o'clock. I'll meet you at the beach at 2 o'clock. You're on. I'm not kidding, either, let's go."
Sumpter wrote in his report that at one point during the conversations, Whitlow begged to be killed.
"One shot, one kill is all I want," Sumpter quoted Whitlow.
Whitlow would not come out off of his porch, however, so Sumpter and the other officers devised a plan to distract Whitlow while other officers snuck around the side of his house to arrest him.
Sheriff's Lt. Michael Keiser, who had been at Whitlow's house a day earlier, was the officer charged with appearing to Whitlow in front of his cottage to engage him in conversation.
He yelled to Whitlow that he wanted him to come down into his yard to speak with him.
"Whitlow stated he remembered me," Keiser wrote in his report. "I told Whitlow I needed to speak with him and asked him if he would come down off the porch. Whitlow became agitated and began to yell."
This is when things got worse and more dangerous.
"Whitlow grabbed a machete and threatened to kill me and any other police officer who came near him," Keiser wrote.
Keiser told Whitlow to drop his weapon, and instead Whitlow picked up a knife in his right hand, held it at shoulder level, and made a throwing motion, the officer wrote.
"Whitlow then told me he could kill me from where he was," Keiser wrote. "I continued to engage him in order to keep his attention, telling him to drop the weapons."
Whitlow's attention was indeed focused toward Keiser. He didn't notice as several officers ran to the side of his house, crept up to the side of his porch, and one of them, a Harbor Springs Police officer, shot Whitlow with a taser.
As officer David Heater jogged along the side of the house and approached the porch, Whitlow could be heard yelling at Lt. Keiser and other officers in position in front of his porch. "Back off now, goddamnit, back the f--- off. I can kill you from here motherf-----s."
That's when the audio is interrupted by a loud -- BANG! -- and Whitlow can be heard again, saying, "Ow! F----r!
Next there's lots more shouting and Whitlow yelled, "Don't shoot, don't shoot."
There was more commotion and yelling as Whitlow dropped his weapons and dropped to his knees and officers swarmed the porch and handcuffed Whitlow.
In the video, Whitlow's hair is long and stringy. He wore a dark sport coat with light pants and a light dress shirt.
As officers pinned him and cuffed him, he said, "Come on, I have rheumatoid arthritis," and later he said, "F---, you guys have stepped on my constitutional rights for too f------ long; you're all in for a major lawsuit."
Meanwhile, Heater can be heard marveling at how he shot a taser at Whitlow, who is six feet three inches tall and weighs around 185 pounds, and yet Whitlow was still able to come in his direction with the machete.
"You're not supposed to do that, you're supposed to go down," he said.
During his arrest, Whitlow said he suffered from clinical depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
"I'm an alcoholic and a drug addict," he said. "I don't want to be alive any more, goddamn it. I want to be with my friends and family. Just f---ing shoot me goddamn it. What do I have to do?"
A deputy was sent inside to clear the house and make sure it was safe.
Tapped for the job was Dep. Rich Bankey, who upon entering could smell that the house was filled with natural gas.
In the kitchen he found the stove was turned on and the oven door was open, with a firework set inside.
He "noticed several burner knobs were turned on with burners running," he wrote. He "turned off all of the knobs to prevent a possible discharge of the items from the heat."
Sheriff Wallin said the situation was extremely dangerous and it's lucky nobody got injured or killed.
"It was very dangerous, lives and property could have been lost. People could have gotten hurt," Wallin said. "Fortunately it ended in a safe manner."
Whitlow was taken to the hospital and then the jail and charged with 12 felonies stemming from the incident. The most serious charge he faces, manufacture of explosives with malicious intent, stemming from the allegedly booby-trapped stove, carries up to 15 years in prison.
Since Whitlow has been in jail, he's been charged with additional crimes for allegedly attempting to make weapons in jail, Wallin said.
On July 30, Whitlow was ordered to undergo an evaluation to determine his competency to stand trial at the Center for Forensic Psychiatry.
Bond was originally set at $1.5 million for Whitlow and it's since been reduced to $500,000, but it appears unlikely the man who had been living in a cottage he co-owned with his brother that is worth over $2 million can afford to post bail.
Whitlow has been in a downward spiral of alcoholism and mental illness for years, according to court records pertaining to his estranged wife's divorce case against him and a personal protection order she sought and received.
In addition to the Harbor Point property, which was sold last month for over $2 million, Whitlow and his wife of nine years also owned another home in Harbor Springs and a home in Pine, Ariz., which has been sold since the divorce was filed. That house sold for $265,000 in March.
Perhaps no other detail speaks to Whitlow's fall from wealth more than the fact that Whitlow, a man whose own divorce attorney described him as a once wealthy man, was charged with passing a bad check at a hardware store earlier this year.
Whitlow is accused of purchasing numerous items at Meyer Ace Hardware in Harbor Springs on April 17 with a check made out for $1,062.
A bad check notice was sent to Whitlow, which he apparently ignored, according to a Harbor Springs Police affidavit.
Demand was made again for Whitlow to pay the debt when he was in jail on May 29. He was arrested three days earlier for allegedly violating a personal protection order his estranged wife filed against him.
On June 7, he still had not made good on the check and a warrant request was submitted to the prosecutor's office. When he was finally arrested on the day of the standoff, police arrested Whitlow on the bad check charge.
Since the standoff, Whitlow's estranged wife has sought to get court protection for assets to make sure Whitlow cannot post bail.
According to papers filed in the divorce case, the wife's attorney, Mary Beth Kur, said her client "is extremely apprehensive that the defendant will use the funds (from the sale of the Harbor Point property) to post bond and then squander them as he has other money over the past few months."
The couple were married for over nine years and lived off of investment income, according to the suit. Over the nine years, there were over 30 trips to hospitals or emergency rooms and six or seven stints in rehab.
Earlier this year, Whitlow went on a spending spree, Kur argued. He spent money on gambling, guitars, televisions "and unknown other things."
"Defendant told Plaintiff recently that he was going to buy a guitar, amplifiers, speakers, and 'the works.' Defendant does not play the guitar," Kur wrote.
Whitlow also gave large amounts of money to people he met at Harbor Hall, a drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility, Kur said, and on a recent trip to the casino he withdrew over $1,500.
Whitlow's behavior became more and more erratic. At Harbor Hall, Whitlow told his estranged wife he began to talk to god, the woman wrote in a brief she filed in April.
According to a brief filed by one of David Whitlow's attorneys, William Sullivan, Whitlow was very wealthy and then lost his fortune throughout his marriage.
None of Whitlow's attorneys returned messages seeking comment. Kur did not return a message seeking comment.
Prior to the divorce case, which was filed April 12, Whitlow's wife sought a restraining order against him.
The woman said in her application for a personal protection order in December that her husband had become unstable recently and his health and mental state were deteriorating. He'd become increasingly prone to threaten violence, she said.
And he had been told by doctors he had only six months to live.
"He knows he's dying, he does not care who he takes down with him," she wrote. "I fear if he is given the chance he will kill me."
At this point, she wrote, Whitlow has stopped taking care of himself for months. He hadn't bathed. His fingernails had grown long. He hadn't washed or changed his clothes.
"I was so afraid last night I slept with pepper spray and the phone by my pillow," the woman wrote. "I did not know what he was going to do."
Whitlow was charged with violating the PPO on May 26.
He allegedly put a red bicycle and left a note -- carved into a birch tree -- at the house the couple had once shared in Harbor Springs.
His wife arrived home to find the red bicycle and the note, which contained her initials and announced the bike was being returned. She later told police she thought the message was supposed to look like a grave marker.
She also said she had never seen the bicycle before.
When state police trooper Jeff Ruthis investigated, she told him she thought police coddled her husband and that he never got in trouble for things like he should.
When Ruthis interviewed Whitlow, he admitted to dropping off the bike, but he said he drove with a friend he met in rehab and the friend dropped off the bike.
He became agitated when he was arrested for a PPO violation.
In his police report, Ruthis documented several comments from Whitlow during the arrest -- he said, "I have been insane several times," and, later, "I know senators and congressmen!" Perhaps most disturbingly, Whitlow talked about his anger: "It's only by self restraint this town's not full of corpses," Ruthis wrote in his police report.
Later Ruthis said Whitlow bragged that the authorities took it easy on him, "Whitlow went on to talk about his criminal history and sarcastically said how all of the charges were reduced or dismissed."


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Concrete seems about as straightforward and rugged as any material on site. But the fact is, if you make certain common mistakes during placement, you can end up with a weak finished product. Here are some essential guidelines that will guarantee good work.Read more
This follow-up article to "Mudsill Layout for a Complex Foundation" describes techniques for framing the first-floor deck.Read more
Install a tight weather barrier, choose top-quality shingles, and use smart production techniques.Read more
Youíll need a written plan, proper training, and the right equipment to comply with OSHA safety rulesRead more
EMT costs more up front, but it's less likely to get damaged and makes future upgrades a lot easier.Read more
Smarter layouts and right-sized pipes save time, water, and energyRead more
Balancing cooling with humidity control is a tough job in the coastal South. A North Carolina hvac pro explains how the latest generation of cooling equipment meets the challenge.Read more
Though it's impossible to seal every hole in an existing building to prevent air leaks, here's a procedure you can use to identify the worst leaks in order to tighten the home as cost-effectively as possible.Read more
Advanced membranes and careful detailing help this coastal house face the elements Read more
Gene Summy provides tips on a proper AMAA "A-1" method flashing installation Read more
Skip the sanding but take more time for a careful install Read more
Flashing windows the "right way" requires three sets of instructions - for the... Read more
Avoid errors that will cause a fiber-cement job to fail Read more
An experienced tile-setter uses the light-weight Schluter system to get shower... Read more
The worst decades for building science weren't in the 1800s; they were late 1970s... Read more
In the latest National Electric Code, every switch box in a habitable room or... Read more
A system for framing, sheathing, and siding rake walls on the deck, regardless of... Read more
Mike MacFarland outlines the benefits of leak-free ducts. Read more
Tens of thousands of wood-framed houses in the Bay Area were built on short... Read more
Use a slightly different approach when installing doors before carpeting. Read more
In this seven-part video series, JLC contributor and JLC Live presenter, Myron...
Veteran contractor and JLC LIVE presenter, Mike Sloggatt demonstrates effective...


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This week, I noticed that there were 666 followers of the Break Room via Google Friend Connect. The 666th follower was a man named Alex. Alex, where are you? I clicked on your GFC picture and I see you with a precious little baby. The image was too small, so I couldn't use it in the choir picture below. The choir needs you Alex. You are what inspired the choir! At the moment, you are the smiling yellow thumbs-up face. Anyway, in an effort to ward off Satan's presence in the Break Room, I created the very first "Kelley's Break Room" choir with the new GFC followers yesterday. I am so excited to introduce them to you!!
Right in the center is #667 Robyn of Hollow Tree Ventures! Robyn writes a funny, funny blog and is a great supporter in the blogosphere. I love the pictures she captions and the charts she creates, like this one about how social media drives her crazy. You'll definitely want her on your team!
To Robyn's right (our left) is #668 Kristine of Wait in the Van. Kristine is a New York transplant now living in Texas (yeeehaw!!!), writes a hilarious blog AND also writes for The Mouthy Housewives. She once wrote a tweet about Bill Nye the Science Guy that got shared a gazillion times on Twitter. I also just noticed that she recommends the Break Room to her readers on the right side of her blog. She must've been following me via a feed, but decided to go the extra mile and follow me via GFC, too. Thanks, Kristine! I'm tearing up over here!!
Continuing around the little circle we find Jeanne of Patricia from Worst Mom Ever. I recently began reading her blog when I found it via our Wednesday link-up, "Finding the Funny". She is a fun homeschooling mom who writes about her cute family. She shares lots of good recipes and stories about her busy life with her family.
On Patricia's right is Alex, the yellow smiling face dude. I want a better picture of Alex. If you are reading this right now, Alex, please comment below. I'd love a link to your blog and a better picture of you. You are in the choir, after all!
On Robyn's left (our right) is Jeanne of Life in Cleveland. Jeanne is brand-new to me, but I look forward to reading her blog! She is a retired architect who used to go on 3-day hikes to places like Machu Picchu before having her cute children and writing about them while living in her favorite city of Cleveland, Ohio.
So, that's the choir.
We will be traveling all around the country singing all kinds of songs, including "Amazing Grace", "Lookin' for Love (in all the wrong places)" and "Party Anthem (in the house toniiiiiight)", so please look for us at your local bank, grocery store and cleaners. Be sure to look for me in the choir leader's robe:
Our very first debut will be in Rockefeller Center. We are going to do our best to sing really loudly while the Good Morning America people go about their business outside with the crowd. We are hoping to draw enough attention with our rendition of Madonna's "Holiday" that the camera pans over to us and the entire Good Morning America crowd circles around us.
Why Madonna's "Holiday"? Why are we singing the "CELEBRATE!!!" part really, really, really loudly? It's because I'm being featured over at ParentsConnect today!
You may remember my silly post "9 Tips for Being a Sexy, Sassy Mama" that I posted last week. That post was written for ParentsConnect as a part of their "Sexy Mama Bootcamp". When you go to the ParentsConnect post about Kelley's Break Room HERE and make a comment in the thread, you will be entered in the Overstock.com Bedroom Makeover giveaway. You know I'd be thrilled to see your faces over there. Thanks for your support!!
Oh, and one more thing, when you're finished commenting, I hope you will buy a taxi cab ride, bus, plane, subway or train ticket over to Rockefeller Center in NYC to hear the Kelley's Break Room choir. By the time you arrive, we will probably be singing "Cherish the Love" by Kool & the Gang. Maybe after we're done, we can all go eat pizza and see the Statue of Liberty.
Click HERE for a free ride to ParentsConnect!


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Time to End the Post-Election Hangover
That's what is happening right now. A lot of traders apparently bought into the political spin of their party leaders, assuming bad motives on the part of the other side, and the result is clear in the latest American Association of Individual Investors sentiment index -- a sharp fall into bearish territory since November 6. One trader put this on a chart and posted it to Twitter.
I see it every day -- hundreds of comments on stories trying to re-litigate the election on SeekingAlpha.com, crickets when I write about real market opportunities on that site.
Investors are suddenly more bearish than at any time this year. They're more bearish than they were in May, when USA Today said no one wanted stocks anymore, as Barry Ritholz wrote at the time,. Even more bearish than June, when AmericanManufacturing.org was collecting "oh noes" about China.
Or, as CNBC put it all last week: Fiscal cliff! Fiscal cliff! Fiscal cliff!
Well, fiscal cliff schmiscal cliff.
First, let's get two things straight. Mitt Romney is not a fascist, and Barack Obama is not a Kenyan Muslim Socialist. Their differences are minor compared with what they agree on. If you're buying or selling assets based on a caricature, based on politics, you're losing money in any market.
Here's the truth. The American economy is in pretty good shape, compared to the rest of the world. You can throw darts at a board, or you can buy the New York Stock Exchange (SPY) or Nasdaq (QQQ) ETFs and come back five years from now with more money than you started with.
Consumers are less debt-ridden than at any time since 2003, as The FiscalTimes writes. We have a natural gas glut we can't export, MoneyNews writes, meaning energy inputs cost less here. And when that glut ends, we make more money.
The dimensions of a sustainable recovery are also coming into focus. We are approaching energy abundance, not just oil and gas abundance but abundance in technologies that produce alternatives to oil and gas, and use that energy more efficiently.
Manufacturing is coming back, not just mass production, but the use of affordable 3D printing and robotics to create custom, high-margin goods at low cost. Cloud computing, wireless networking and mobile clients that are literally as cheap as chips. We have a workforce that's better educated than China's and younger than Europe's.


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SkyView takes you to the top of the Ericsson Globe, a spherical Stockholm landmark in the south of the city. You are transported up the 130 metres in a glass gondola attached to rails on the superstructure of the building.
SkyView, Globen in Stockholm
Tommy Andersson/imagebank.sweden.se
The views of Stockholm from SkyView are brilliant: you see Stockholm, built on 14 islands, in all directions and you can even see some of Stockholm's glittering archipelago. The trip takes a leisurely 16 minutes and there are two gondolas side-by-side, each carrying 16 people. For the technically-minded, the Ericsson Globe was reinforced with 70 tonnes of steel, airlifted in by helicopter and installed by mountaineers (who else). You can combine a trip on SkyView with a guided tour of the inside of the Ericsson Globe – a multipurpose rock concert to ice hockey venue.
Say 'I do' on top of the world's largest spherical building and amaze people when they ask you where you got married. The organizers even arrange champagne and eats.
Getting to SkyView is easy, take the Stockholm Metro Green line straight to 'Globen' station. The attraction is just a couple of minutes' walk away
All year round
Order brochures over different activities and destinations in Sweden.
Partner with us. Contact us and we'll tell you more. In Swedish only!
Go here for press releases, images and press contacts.
Find your contacts for Meetings & Incenitives in Sweden
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Faculty of Arts
Faculty of Arts Advising Week
Oct 21/13
Date: Oct 21/13 - Oct 24/13
Time: 11:00 - 15:00
Location: The Concourse - Waterloo Campus
Cost: none
A great opportunity for students in the Faculty of Arts to meet with an Academic Advisor!
Need to know how to:
- Declare a major?
- Change your major?
- Clear probation?
- Add an option or minor?
- Make sure you are progressing according to plan?
Look for the Academic Advising booth in the Concourse, the week of October 21st - 24th, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day. No appointment necessary!
Contact: Dr. Mercedes Rowinsky-Geurts
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Phone: 519.884.0710 x2785
View all Faculty of Arts events


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Spokeswoman Victoria Nuland discusses the increase of aggressive rhetoric that is being expressed on a regular basis by the North Korean government.
North Korea is moving a medium-range missile to a site in the east of the country, a U.S. intelligence official said Thursday as tensions with the nuclear-armed state continued to escalate.
The official declined to say where the Musudan missile was headed, but the North has used a site near the Russian border on the coast for its missile tests in the past.
In response to North Korea's announcement that they will be deploying "small, light" nuclear strikes, the Pentagon has announced it is sending an anti-ballistic missile system to Guam. NBC's Richard Engel reports.
South Korean Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin told lawmakers Thursday that the missile had "considerable range" but not enough to hit the U.S. mainland, according to The Associated Press.
The news came hours after North Korea's military warned that it had been authorized to attack the U.S. using "smaller, lighter and diversified" nuclear weapons -- the latest in a string of war cries against America in recent weeks.
"The moment of explosion is approaching fast," the military statement said.
Tensions on the Korean Peninsula rose in December when the North test-fired a rocket and increased again when it tested a nuclear bomb in February.
Russia joined the ranks of countries voicing concern at the escalating crisis, saying the North's disregard for United Nations' restrictions was unacceptable.
The U.S. is sending an advanced anti-ballistic missile system to Guam to protect American military sites, officials said Wednesday.
The Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense system is expected to arrive at the U.S. territory in the Pacific within two weeks.
'Real and clear danger'
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said the North's provocations were "a real and clear danger and threat" to U.S. interests and stressed that Washington was taking them seriously.
U.S. officials tell NBC News they believe North Korea does have the capability to put a nuclear weapon on a missile and that they have missile deliverable nukes. Those missiles, however, cannot go more than 1000 miles. NBC's Richard Engel reports.
"We are doing everything we can ... to defuse that situation on the peninsula," Hagel said after a speech Wednesday at the National Defense University at Fort McNair in Washington, D.C.
"I hope the North will ratchet this very dangerous rhetoric down," he said, adding that there is a pathway to peace but only if Pyongyang decides to be "a responsible member of the world community."
On Thursday, North Korea warned its military had been authorized to carry out "cutting-edge, smaller, lighter and diversified" nuclear strikes to protect itself against the United States.
"The moment of explosion is approaching fast. No one can say a war will break out in Korea or not and whether it will break out today or tomorrow," read the statement of an unnamed military spokesman.
The statement, which was carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), informed the White House and the Pentagon that "the merciless operation of its revolutionary armed forces in this regard has been finally examined and ratified."
It also made reference to U.S. jet sorties over the Korean Peninsula, which Pentagon officials have said are part of routine, joint military drills with South Korea.
If North Korea were to employ nuclear weapons, it would impact U.S. troops and pressure Japan and South Korea to also consider obtaining nuclear weapons – something that could lead to an all-out arms race. NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports.
"The U.S. high-handed hostile policy toward the DPRK aimed to encroach upon its sovereignty and the dignity of its supreme leadership and bring down its social system is being implemented through actual military actions without hesitation," the North's statement read.
Meanwhile, a former U.N. official who visited North Korea last year reported that officials there said they could restart the Yongbyon reactor in three months. That is significantly quicker than many U.S. nuclear experts believe a restart would take.
U.S. officials said they did not believe the operation would be a huge engineering challenge.
A restart would, however, be significant, as it would give North Korea the capability to make weapons-grade plutonium again. The reactor was shut down in 2007.
"North Korea's assertion that it intends to bring Yongbyon back online can't be easily written off as an insurmountable hurdle," one U.S. official said.
The Associated Press and NBC News' Marc Smith, Alastair Jamieson, Andrea Mitchell and Becky Bratu contributed to this report.
What happens if North Korea gets out of hand? Here are some scenarios
NBC News' Jim Maceda responds to your questions on North Korea tensions
Full North Korea coverage from NBC News
This story was originally published on Thu Apr 4, 2013 4:17 AM EDT


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GV Now
GRPS students experience college life
Posted on June 17, 2013
GRPS students experience life as a college student
About 33 incoming ninth grade students from Grand Rapids Public Schools visited Grand Valley June 11-14 to experience life as a college student.
The visit was part of the Michigan Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) initiative, a college awareness program at Grand Valley that provides academic support and encouragement to students from Grand Rapids.
The students, from Gerald R. Ford and Riverside middle schools, toured campus, including classrooms, computer labs and campus dining restaurants.
The GEAR UP program received a $52,400 grant in March to continue through 2018 from the U.S. Department of Education and the State of Michigan. The program is coordinated by staff members in Grand Valley's Office of Multicultural Affairs.
Bobby Jo Springer, associate director of OMA and GEAR UP program manager, said nearly 500 students will visit Grand Valley by the end of the summer. The program also supports current GRPS seventh grade students.
GEAR UP is a national effort and all 15 public universities in Michigan have a program.
For more information, visit www.gvsu.edu/oma.


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Eastern New Mexico University has announced a "Win for Wallis" campaign in support of Lauren Wallis, the daughter of ENMU defensive coordinator Todd Wallis and his wife, Michelle.
Lauren Wallis was born six weeks premature July 12.
So far, $3,267.08 has been generated through the project, which is based on points scored (236) and turnovers generated (15) by the ENMU football team. The money goes into an account for Lauren at J.P. Stone Community Bank in Portales.
The Greyhounds have four games remaining, including today's 2 p.m. home contest against Abilene Christian at Blackwater Draw.
For information on the project or how to become a sponsor, contact Norma Stroik in the ENMU athletic office at 562-2153.


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You are Here:
/ Massachusetts NRCS
Loading Tree...
Welcome to the NRCS
Massachusetts state web site.
Northborough residents and other interested parties attended a
public meeting to discuss and submit comments on proposed plans to upgrade the
Hop Brook Dam in Northborough. The meeting was held on
Thursday June 28th
at the Northborough Town Hall.
NRCS has prepared a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) in
compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), as amended, and
gives notice that an environmental impact statement is not being prepared for
the Taunton State Hospital dam removal project.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture�s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
in partnership with the Department of the Interior�s Fish and Wildlife Service
have announced funding for a new Working Lands for Wildlife partnership, which
allows farmers and forest landowners to use innovative approaches to restore and
protect habitat for at-risk wildlife species such as the New England cottontail
Outreach is part of NRCS' daily business. We work to ensure that programs
and services are made accessible to all customers, while placing special emphasis on those
who may be underserved. Historically, underserved audiences have included minorities,
tribes, women, the disabled, new farmers, limited resource farmers and
small-scale farmers. Underserved audiences can also include other groups of
customers, such as new immigrant or refugee farmers or organic producers. We'd
like to reach you too.
The Natural Resources Conservation Service provides leadership
in a partnership effort to help people conserve, maintain, and improve our natural
resources and environment.


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Semi-Automatic Espresso Machines
Be your own barista! Semi-automatic espresso machines offer just the right amount of control over how your espresso is made at home. While they may look different, the basic functionality of a semi-automatic espresso machine includes a boiler, a portafilter and a switch or lever to perform the extraction. You'll still grind and tamp your espresso (or insert an espresso pod), start the extraction and then steam or froth your milk as necessary. Semi-automatic espresso machines fall into two different types:
- Manual Control: On these semi-automatic espresso machines, the shot is initiated and you stop it once you decide the extraction is complete, usually in 20-30 seconds. This offers real-time control over the length of your extractions
- Programmable Doses: These semi-automatic espresso machines allow you to program the extraction to stop after a specific amount of time.
Learn More about Semi-Automatic Espresso Machines
Breville Oracle BES980XL Espresso MachineBreville may have traveled to an ancient land for the answers, but arrived at only one conclusion – the Oracle! Gather around and present your deepest coffee concerns, because we have a feeling you'll find what you're looking for. Learn More$1,999.99
Breville Dual Boiler Espresso Machine BES920XLBreville collected the comment cards and heard the outcries, but we know you provided a polite suggestion. They artfully responded by introducing the new, updated Breville Dual Boiler. Now you can enjoy brewing and descaling in the comfort of your own home. You no longer need to take your machine to the pros for a simply cleaning, which saves you time, effort and possible maintenance fees. Need I say more? Learn More$1,299.99


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I need some ideas/help with our twin girls. They were born 7 weeks early and spent 3 weeks in the NICU learning to eat. I did not get much bf support in the hospital, other than information about pumping. Once the girls came home we were told to only spend about 5 minutes every other feeding trying to get them to latch. Well, they are now 7 weeks old and they will latch on and suck some. We have weighed them before and after a feeding and they will each take .5 to 1 oz per feeding. After this they get tired and they do not suck any more. They will stay latched on but I cannot get them to suck. We have to be careful about wearing them out too much, so then we switch to a bottle for the remainder of the feeding, and at this feeding they get pumped breast milk. They were taking about 3 oz per feeding before they started latching on well. Our ped. encourages us to bf but he said to go ahead and supplement until they are taking more breast milk because they are so tiny and he wants them to continue on the growth path they are on now.
My question is this, how can I get them to become more efficient nursers and not just fall asleep at the breast? I do try to wake them up, but nothing seems to work. Since they were preemies, is it just a developmental thing and they will get it soon? Any suggestions would be great! I exclusively nursed my other two girls and I really want to bf this time too.


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It's just like any other day in Riddleport as it is in any other city of the world. People mill about for their own reasons with motivations and goals like any other being out there, yet in Riddleport, the 'average' citizens' means of achieving their goals is not what most in Golarion would coin to be congenial. Even though the city is moving toward a more civilized order, it is still a city birthed on piracy and raiding and this be the reason why Riddleport so thrives! One may build wealth to last him a lifetime yet many covet the success of the 'lucky' few who do, so heed well all ye prospectors, protect that which you glean with your blood, sweat and wit.
As all residents and visitors well know, a shadow has lingered in the sky near town for many weeks now. That is to say that enough time has passed that business must continue as normal,lest those distracted from their own concerns, give opportunity to the focused and relentlessly motivated. The scholars and cyphers make it their business however and the influx of academics to Riddleport to study both the Blot and the Cyphergate has stirred the cauldron of commerce and palms are itching about every corner.
There are some particular souls within Riddleport at this time who are either desperate to make a swift gold purse or are interested in turning a quick profit. Whatever the point of view of the individual matters not to the owner of Golden Goblin Gaming Hall who is organizing a gala to celebrate the reopening of his grand investment. In almost every tavern and inn commons in town there are flyers posted spurring rowdy discussions about ones luck in fortune and whether it be ample enough to enter and win. This seems to have increased of late, the tabletop gambling and swindling in all districts by those trying to earn a purse enough to buy entry to the tourney.
Tonight is the evening of the tournament. You ready yourself for whatever the evening may bring and make your way to the establishment. Your first indication that you are nearly there is the throng of voices and buzz of excitement coming from down the cobbled road. A large group of people wait eagerly out front in a semi ordered line to gain entry into the gala. You also notice small groups of suspicious looking vagrants milling about in the shadows in the surrounding alleys, no doubt appraising those in attendance. You think to yourself, 'Someones getting fleeced tonight whether it be the person or the house,' the thought alone causing you to hustle forward a little quicker to join the line of hopefuls. A breeze gusts bringing with it the unmistakeable pong of the river and turn to see the moonlight shimmering off its waters in the distance. Unusual how something so 'down trodden' can still appear beautiful at times. You snap out of that revery and as you continue to wait you appraise the building knowing that this grand establishment has seen better days. A wide veranda runs along the front between two short wings of the building. A massive, brass half-dome tops the building, but it is now tarnished and marred by the impact of years of weathering and bears a patina of greenish brown. This all due to the slide toward order in Riddleport accelerating, the once thriving wharf district has fallen on hard times and prosperity has moved to the Free-coin District mostly under Cromarcky's ownership.
A gorgeous young female appears at the top of the stair and greets you all saying, 'Welcome to the Gold Goblin, the hot spot for turning fortunes and winning wagers beneath the arch. Looking for the squarest games, most honest dealers, and prettiest blamed barmaids anywhere in the port? Well, you found em, sugar! Ready to be a rich man? Hope so, cause tonight's your night. Belly up to a table and get to winnin, we've got the gold to make your dreams glitter. Good drink, fine food, and warm company's extra, but we've got all that too—at prices so cheap we might as well be giving it away. So find a spot, honey, order a pint, and leave it all to us, cause here, even a goblin could win his weight in gold!
Cheers ring out from the crowd as the greeter departs, obviously some of those in attendance are already half drunk and looking to stay in the same high spirits. As long as it takes the edge off their luck may their spirits soar higher.
Standing before the main doors of the building is an 8-foot-tall statue cast in shining gold to resemble a larger than-life goblin. It balances a golden dogslicer on a pile of gold as it smiles smugly down on all customers who pass beneath its gaze.
The doors themselves are of a strong dark wood imported from southern lands and are decorated with multiple panels depicting signs of luck and good fortune (four-leaf clovers, crossed fingers, and so on).
Just inside the main doors, two sultry beauties scantily clad and
wearing faux bat wings, devil horns, and tails play the part of
alluring succubi. Both are employees of the Gold Goblin, and they cheerfully register contestants for the tournament and process entry fees of 1gp after the contestant agrees to sign a 'Cheat the Devil' Contract.
Armed guards stand nearby to either side of an immense treasure chest into which each patron's entry fee is added. The guards are on hand to not only protect the money, but to prevent any overzealous admirers from trying to dare the infamous touch of a succubus. Beyond the registration table is the hall's game floor. Dozens of gamblers, waitresses dressed as succubi, and bouncers mill about the room, wandering amid tables offering various games while dealers shuffle cards, roll dice, and spin wheels. Moving through this throng are a dozen more of the barely clad, batwinged vixens serving drinks and batting coal-black eyelashes flirtatiously for tips. In the center of the chamber is a short podium atop which sits a massive gold chest affixed to the floor by similarly gaudy chains. On either side of it stands a barechested bouncer in the exotic garb of some foreign sultan's
court. Each stands with muscled arms crossed over his chest and with a naked scimitar of prodigious size tucked through his waistband. High above them, from the hall's cloth-draped ceiling, hangs a brass birdcage within which crouches a small, bat-winged, pointy-tailed devilish creature that sulks as it gazes over the room and occasionally rattles the bars threateningly.
The casino floor is a wide room carpeted in rich red that has been recently patched in many places. Spread throughout the chamber are tables where different games are run. Silken banners hang from floor to ceiling along the walls, and wide vertical blinds are drawn over the windows. The ceiling 20 feet above, is draped in layers of horizontally hung, gauzy beige curtains. Light is provided by numerous chandeliers hanging below the ceiling as well as several large copper braziers spaced around the room with live coals to give the chamber a more hellish light. At the back of the chamber is a small dais bearing a bust of Desna, goddess of luck.
As the last of the hopefuls are registered and the doors close, the air of excitement peaks. Looking about the chamber, you number approximately 100 participants either already seated and trying their luck or rushing to either the cashier, the bar or the lavatory. The burly bouncers stick out among the thrall as do the sexy succubus-costumed barmaids.
When the windows begin darkening with twilight, several gamehall employees enter, carrying torches shaped like pitchforks skewering burning heads made of straw and cloth to light several large braziers,
giving the hall a more infernal hue. A hush falls over the gathered crowd as a short man climbs to the central podium, accompanied by two gorgeous "succubi," and stands before the gold, chain-shrouded chest there with a demoness on either side. He wears a formal suit, and his thinning black hair is slicked back. His left arm ends in a stump just above the wrist, and affixed to it is a bronze cap from which protrudes an oddly shaped key. This is Saul Vancaskerkin, the owner of the Gold Goblin and host of the tournament. He bows before the crowd and clears his throat before speaking.
"Welcome, one and all, to the Gold Goblin Gambling Hall and your chance to cheat the Devil and win back not only your soul but all of his gold as well." He says this last as he pats the large chest before which he stands. "I hope you found your reception by the Devil's lovely temptresses suitably entertaining."
This is met by a general murmur of laughter and a few catcalls.
"Let's take this moment to thank Old Scratch himself for attending this event. Not only did he loan us these lovely, dark angels, but he also emptied the deepest vaults of Hell itself to provide the gold for this tournament."
He directs your attention to the creature in the Cage and Old Scratch flies into a flurry of rage, banging the cage bars, spitting, howling and screaming vile epithets at the crowd. The theatrics are greeted with both guffaws and a smattering of applause. As the crowd quietens down, Vancaskerkin continues.
"Of course, he plans on replacing what he loses in gold with the souls of those of you who don't win. The tournament rules are quite simple—as you play, you'll earn more chips. And with those chips, you'll be able to bribe your way out of the current Hell you're trapped in, working your way down deeper until you get to Old Scratch's treasury. Currently, all of you are Old Scratch's prisoners in the first of the Hells, Avernus. If you want to work your way down to the ninth circle, you need to win games. Each time you win, you'll be awarded a golden eye. If you come in second, you'll get a silver tooth. And third place wins a copper heart. These bits of flesh and bone are what the devils use in Hell for currency, and they're what you'll need to pay in order to bribe your way into the next layer of hell. The first player to win a game after reaching Nessus not only keeps his winnings for that game, but also earns back his soul and the ten thousand silver coins that the Devil put up for this tournament. You can, of course, decide to cash out your winnings at any time you want, but if you do, or if you run out of money entirely… well, that means Old Scratch gets you."
Vancaskerkin grins evilly and the caged imp cuts loose with another
profane tirade.
"And that earns you the Devil's Mark and an escort out of the game hall until the tournament is over. What, you ask, exactly is this Devil's Mark? Well, it's something too utterly horrible to even contemplate. The
forfeiture of your very soul, it is. But I suppose I can show you what it is— gods know I more than deserve the Devil's Mark. In fact, better
make it two, girls!"
With that, the two succubi accompanying him lean over and each firmly plants a kiss on Saul's cheek with her ruby-red lips. When they pull away, their lip rouge has left clearly visible prints in the same shocking red on his cheeks. Saul beams as he cries out.
"The Devil's Mark, everyone!" which is greeted by a flurry of shouts, catcalls and hoots. "Now, let's cheat the Devil and take his gold!" which prompts one more rabid flurry from the imprisoned fiend above, and with that, the tournament begins.
|Valius Coreton
These was not at all what Valius expected. He wanted (needed) to find Lamm and if it would be anywhere in Riddleport this would be the place, but all this was - strange. Almost stranger than the creature in the cage.
Walking the length of the gambling den floor he didn't spit his target, and it fustratued him.
"Deep breaths. Deep breaths, and the mark will show itself no need to look." he could hear Earidissle saying to him. Just like all those times he did at practice.
"Were you here with me now," Valius mumbled to himself wishing the gnome wasn't miles away. He stood at the far wall and stood still taking deep breaths as he looked about the chaotic packed room.
"And where is my new friend, I wonder?" Valius thinks to himself. Shifting a hand through his sandy brown hair he wonders if it is getting hot in the room - like being in Hell.
|Marcus Whiteshae
Gods it was hot. Marcus HATED being cooped up inside. Especially inside a bloody firetrap of sin and greed, with a mob of fools he'd sooner spit on than give the time of day.
More slaves to thier purses. Hoping against the odds for good fortune to miraculously give them what they were looking for.
And for a while at least he was one of them. Except he was gambling on a live snake rather than a game of chance. At least Valius was around, that made ONE person in the room who he wasn't likely to feed to Sampson before the night was through. He petted the Mastiff's head, at least Saul at least informed the man at the door, the dog was to be allowed in. People wanting Marcus's skills got the whole package or not at all.
What are you thinking about Coreton, you've had the cutpurse's eyeing you for a while, so get that starry look out of your eye if you want to keep your coins.
Where the hells did Saul get to, if I'm gonna make any inroads into this damn fool quest of mine I need a job and word is he's paying.
|Ethaniel Meveri
Domain: 1st - True Strike
Lady Calistria, get me through this.
Ethaniel's hand clutches tightly at the wooden holy symbol of the Savored Sting. Its three points are well-worn by the years, but they still feel sharp against his palm. He surveys the gambling hall as he emerges from the restroom.
I am not the only man in this place lifting prayers to Calistria. Does mine sound louder because of my deed? I have known her all my life. I have been her child.
His palm starts to bleed. A drop of blood falls onto the floorboards.
Blood. I should not have come here. Saul could use eyes like mine, but I cannot be a watcher without being watched. I should not have come here.
Ethaniel makes his way through the crowd. A darkened face looks up at him as he pushes through the throng of people.
Don't look. They see you already. You're rushing. They'll see you, bursting out in the middle of the tournament. They'll be waiting. Sit. Play. Leave later among the other rabble. Yes. Thank you, Lady Calistria. That will be my method.
Ethaniel senses something and whirls around.
The creature in the cage watches me! Or does it? Yes, it was watching. A second ago it was. Pitiful beast. Foolish theatrics. And the heat of the fire. Why does it need to be so-
Ethaniel, walking backward, bumps awkwardly into somebody. He turns. He has interrupted a conversation between two men. One of them has a large dog.
Don't apologize. Don't look.
"Sorry." Ethaniel stammers. "Didn't see you."
Annoyed at the interruption, Marcus scowls, That's because your travelling backwards fool
It seemed at least 1/2 the room were into their cups already.
|Tippy Fullbottle
A small, almost invisible presence moves about gambling hall. Only the most observant would notice the scowling halving move about the crowd. He has the grace and nimbleness of a street thief, though the marks he's sizing up today have more to do with their level of drunkenness than their displays of wealth. Ethaniel finds himself a second shadow, as the halfling flashes him a friendly smile.
"You look lost, friend. Perhaps we can help each other find a table and get this show on the road?"
|Ethaniel Meveri
Ethaniel stares blankly at Marcus, seemingly unable to speak. He is greatly relieved when the halfling interjects, though he does not immediately respond. He cocks his head as he looks down at Tippy Fullbottle. There is something familiar about him.
Have I seen this one before? If so, I do not truly remember him, but perhaps it is time I found a seat. A friend, even if just in appearance, may help my cause.
"Certainly." Ethaniel says. "I will follow your lead."
He turns quickly and gives a polite bow to Marcus.
|Tippy Fullbottle
"Excellent! This way!"
The halfling ends him through the crowd, easily slipping between legs, even under tables, to make his way. He's scoping out likely groups of players - folks who've already had a few drinks and look like their acumen has been sufficiently compromised.
Perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (5) + 4 = 9
"Excellent! This way!"
Well your first impression of this pigeon (A person targeted by a criminal to be the victim of a crime) seems to have been not quite correct. He wasn't a soggy plum (a drunk)at all, just clumsy. Nevertheless, as any good employee, you prevented what may have escalated into a brawl and a dampener in festivities.
As everyone starts to filter back to their seats after buying chips to get them underway, you look around and see many different games on offer. From the usual games like poker to unusual regional games; Bounder, Ghoulette, Golem and Skiffs. Alot of people are well into their drink so possibilities are almost endless who to mark. You lead your new 'friend' to a table closer to the private rooms, just out of curiosity of course. And the festivities begin.
As everyone starts to filter back to their seats after buying chips to get them underway, you look around and see many different games on offer. From the usual games like poker to unusual regional games; Bounder, Ghoulette, Golem and Skiffs. Alot of people are well into their drink so possibilities are almost endless who to mark. You lead your new 'friend' to a table closer to the private rooms, just out of curiosity of course. And the festivities begin.
Betting and Chips
- Copper Heart 1cp
- Silver Tooth 1sp
- Gold Eye 1gp
Must be at least 1 silver tooth and requires you to state your bet first. Next, make a D20 roll + CHA Mod or Prof: Gambler Mod.
Each game lasts approximately 5mins.
- 2 Game floor
- 3 Cashier
- 4 Cashier Cage
- 10 Private Rooms Curtained off
- 12 Kitchen
- 15 Bar
- 16 Privies (lavatory)
- 17 Atrium, entrance to guest wing
- 18 Master Suite 3gp per night
- 19 Guest Rooms 5sp per night
- 20 Guest Suite with small side room 1gp per night.
All NPCs with Blue Halo's are Bouncers. The Dealers and croupiers are Red tokens. And you, the PCs have yellow halos.
|Ethaniel Meveri
Ethaniel is just playing to get a sense of the place and what it might like to be a spotter for Saul. He's paying more attention to what others are doing than to his own hand.
Perception - 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (1) + 12 = 13
With a wary eye towards the other players in the hall, Ethaniel tosses a Silver Tooth onto the table.
Gambling - 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (16) + 0 = 16
|Tippy Fullbottle
Over the length of the first game, Tippy bets 3 sp.
Gambling check: 1d20 ⇒ 10
While all sorts of action is gong on on top of the table, Tippy is hard at work beneath it, too. The Qadiran man to his right has had a bit too much to drink already.
Sleight of Hand: 1d20 + 8 - 1 ⇒ (20) + 8 - 1 = 27
Once that game is over,Tippy excuses himself and heads to the cashier to drop off his delivery.
|Marcus Whiteshae
So you have found Marcus who seems preoccupied with his need to find Saul. You can either stick close to Marcus or go about searching for Gaedren. You think that perhaps, if he were here, he would most likely be in one of the private booths as he obviously isn't out in the commons. Where do you go from here?
After making his speech, Saul makes his way from the dais and heads toward the curtained off rooms to bid his high rolling customers a good evening as is customary. It's definitely not hard to spot Saul for all one need do is first find his lumbering body guard Bojask. You recognise all the traits in Bojask of an urban Ranger, one not to be under estimated and his rough exterior cannot betray the discerning eye this man has. You catch Saul and Bojask just before he enters one of the private rooms. Bojask is about to intervene, but before he can act, Saul stops him
Ah, Marcus and .....Samson, nice of you to join us this evening. I take it you are enjoying yourself and this would be reflected much better if you at least appeared to be somewhat amused by all of my efforts so far tonight. Yes, yes, I know its business lad and we shall get around to it but I have managerial duties to seet to you know. I will have Bojask, here show you the way upto the rafters where your glum face will remain out of sight and will still be put to good use spotting the swindlers. Wait where you will and he will be with you shortly.
From what you can see from your current position, not much is happening apart from the occasional groping of one of the waitresses which is swiftly reprimanded by one of Saul's bouncers. It appears one strike and fair warning, strike two and your a dogs breakfast. Even though you aren't paying much attention your attention comes back to the table when you get your first win, minor as it was it's a good start.
Your luck in the game isn't nearly as good as your choice of drunken target. You loose half your stake in your first game but manage to flawlessly remove the purse from the drunk next to you. The game ends and you depart the table to make your delivery. You mosey on upto the cashiers counter and slide the bag over the counter. Without knowing the contents in the purse, the cashier slides back 5 Gold Eye chips. You are now, well and truly in the game. Where to now?
|Ethaniel Meveri
Ethaniel sends a silent prayer of thanks to Calistria.
Thank you, Lady.
He accepts another hand from the dealer. He takes stock of his cards, but his attention wanders again. This time, he focuses on what he hears.
Perception check - 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (11) + 12 = 23
He tosses out another Silver Tooth.
Coin is good, but fortune fades fast. Best play for a time and not be noticed.
Gambling - 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (8) + 0 = 8
|Valius Coreton
Just about to answer and ask Marcus if he wanted to get a drink at the bar in the back (away from all the body heat), Val notices that both man and mutt are already off and in conversation with someone.
He shakes the chips in his hand and looks about for Gaedren from his spot.
Then he notices the bouncer looking at him. The big bare chested man taps his buudy on the arm and nods towards Val.
"Uh-oh. What do I..." he starts to think as the chips clink in his hands, "...right."
Val moves to the nearest table and takes a seat placing a small bet and watches the room more than the game.
1d20 + 0 ⇒ (7) + 0 = 7
Above all the noise, you are drawn to the most unusual sounds about you and your gaze is lifted up to the roof where Old Scratch is caged. The little devil seems to be looking down at you, scowl turning into a toothy grin as your eyes meet. Then he sinks back out of your view and you would be forgiven for getting a chill run down your spine. As you look back down you notice a guard standing in front of a closed door (V,6) keeps returning his gaze to you after short periods of time. Perhaps your nervous energy coupled with your surveying the room is gaining you misplaced and unwanted attention.
|Marcus Whiteshae
Marcus inclines his head in acknowledgement to Saul and follows his instruction to head upstairs, but he is sure to cast a deep scowl at the other ranger before he leaves.
There was no event that caused the animosity between the two. Just the tension that comes from putting 2 bulls in the same paddock. One word word is all it's going to take, these two will come to blows...
|Ascaria de Vintre
0: Detect Magic, Guidance, Message
1: Charm Person, Cure Light Wounds
I am assuming that Saul lets me stay in one of the guest rooms as part of returning the favor (curing his aunt).
Ascaria cast detect magic. Then, she patted Blackbeard one last time before she left her room. She had briefly considered taking him with her but had decided against it. All the people would probably make him nervous and it would also draw unwanted attention to her. And that she didn't need.
When she entered the gambling floor, the sensation nearly overwhelmed her. It was incredibly crowded, the chatter had already reached deafening levels and it stank even though the tournament had barely begun. Ascaria rolled her eyes and sighed. This could prove to be much more unpleasant than she had expected.
A little insecure, she started into the large room. She had never attended one of these events and didn't really know what to do. Then she noticed the queue at the cashier's desk. It was probably a good idea to get some chips. She pressed through the crowd, avoiding a grim-looking human with a large dog and stood in line behind a halfling.
While waiting, she let her gaze wonder about the room, inconspicuously looking for a sign of magical auras.
Perception: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (14) + 3 = 17
|Marcus Whiteshae
Marcus surveys the crowd below, being a spotter wasn't his forte but he was in no position to dictate terms to Saul. He takes his Shortbow off his back and lays it beside him, both to have it ready and hide it from view from the crowd below. He didn't really expect trouble, but he was taught if he was going to spot from a hide, he should always be ready to shoot.
1d20 + 6 ⇒ (17) + 6 = 23 to look for trouble and keep an eye on Valius.
"Up in a f*#!ing nest like a damn bird! This is work for Valius."
He gives Samson a pat to calm the dog, who lays down to settle in.
"Good Boy!"
|Ethaniel Meveri
I shouldn't have come here. I shouldn't have come. Wretched beast! Where did Saul get it? What's he thinking hanging it in here?
Ethaniel does his best to pretend to ignore Old Scratch. He turns and looks hard at the the guard that has been watching him.
Sense Motive - 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (9) + 6 = 15
|Tippy Fullbottle
Tippy comes up behind Ethaniel with a strong drink in hand. "Ethaniel, my friend. Shame about that last hand, but I'm sure you can win it back. Here, I brought you Cayden Cailean's own courage to help, and found us a good table where the gold is freely flowing away from the other's coin purses. You play the cards well, friend, but you're sweating up a storm. Lets the other players know you aren't confident. Never good at the card table to show weakness."
Tippy leads him towards another table of drunks.
Perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11 to find one.
|Ethaniel Meveri
Ethaniel sits very still.
"You know my name?" He grips his holy symbol tightly. "From where?"
He takes the drink from Tippy and places it on the table without sipping from it. He does not take his eyes from the halfling.
It's very possible that Tippy knows who Ethaniel is, but Ethaniel doesn't really recognize Tippy beyond a passing familiarity.
|Tippy Fullbottle
Ethaniel sits very still.
"You know my name?" He grips his holy symbol tightly. "From where?"
He takes the drink from Tippy and places it on the table without sipping from it. He does not take his eyes from the halfling.
It's very possible that Tippy knows who Ethaniel is, but Ethaniel doesn't really recognize Tippy beyond a passing familiarity.
Oops, that's my fault for not reading over back posts carefully enough, but if you're willing to go with it...
"From the temple of Calistra, aren't you? I used to stay there from time to time, with Melisse and sometimes Carressa. Don't worry if you don't remember me, I have a knack for going unnoticed places. My ma was a working girl in Magnimar, and when I needed a pace to stay here, some of the girls at the temple would give me a bed for a few nights. When they weren't using them with a paying congregate, of course, although like I said, I have a knack for people not noticing me when I don't want to be seen, and man I'm telling you, a bloke can really get an education watching the sacred prostitutes at work!"
Tippy laughs.
It's already in his backstory that he spent the night being sheltered by prostitutes, so is seems a natural extension, and nicely connects two PCs.
|Ethaniel Meveri
I'm totally willing to go with it!
Ethaniel has never been in the employ of the House of Silken Veil; he's more of a private worshiper. They do know him well there, however, as he occasionally comes to the temple and hires one of the abbesses to tell him stories. He pays for their time, but never partakes in sexual acts with them. He is interested in hearing of their lives before they entered service to the Savored Sting, and in their feelings on the lessons within Calistria's Book of Joy. Many of the sacred prostitutes will have nothing to do with him. He knows Melisse well, though, and she likely would have mentioned him and his strange practice.
Ethaniel chuckles lightly. "That must be it. I will try to remember you from this point forward, friend. And your name?"
|Tippy Fullbottle
Well there are numerous minor magical items in all areas about the place but nothing is issuing any particularly strong auras. As you return to the gaming floor you, cast your eyes into the private rooms and you see far more auras coming from within there. You take a moment and see a couple who of contestants who have magical auras surrounding them. This, of all that you have seen is the most concerning, but you would need to study the auras for a short time to determine what it could be. In the common gaming area you see three folks that have multiple auras about their person but no full bodied auras.
@Valius (currently at Grid (O,13))
There is a halfling at your table with an annoying stutter which wouldn't be so bad if he wasn't trying to make conversation with everyone. Noone at the table seems to be whelmed by his attempts.
|Ethaniel Meveri
Not to be trusted, this one, but I'll with him. To not only engage me out of the entire crowd, but to return and offer a drink? I shan't risk ignoring him. I may find him to be a poor friend, but he would likely prove a worse enemy.
"Yes. And I do not wish to seem ungrateful...but...I do not drink. It puts a shine on my sight that I do not care for. But let me gift the drink to you instead." Ethaniel reaches for his purse. "What did you pay for it?"
|Marcus Whiteshae
Well time to do what I'm being paid for. The 'Great Ranger', scourge of card cheats and lowlifes alike. Better tell Bojask, lest the fool think I'm disrupting the party
Varrel grabs his gear and moves downstairs, moves close enough to ensure Bojask can read his lips and mouths 'CHEAT' and goes over and lays a rough hand on the mans shoulder. He doesn't pull steel yet, no need to escalate things more than necessary, but his Spring loaded wrist sheath already if he needed a dagger in a hurry.
I believe the house takes a dim view of swindlers. Dealer, you'll want to replay that last hand and this fools coin on the table belongs to the house
Varrel, drags the man from his chair and muscles him towards the door, making checks as necessary.
Grapple check1d20 + 5 ⇒ (16) + 5 = 21
Samson, knowing when his master is being aggressive, puts in a deep throated growl.
Move. Before I tell my dog to 'Sic Balls'.
|Ascaria de Vintre
Ascaria slowly wanders around the game floor. To an unsuspecting onlooker it might look as if she is trying to decide for a game table. In reality, she keeps an eye out for magical auras.
A figure on a table in the back gets her attention. He looks like the typical Grog-Blossom trying to make his luck here at the tournament. However, there is a weak but distinct magical aura about him. It is strange that someone like him should have access to magic.
Maybe someone's trying to further his own luck a bit, Ascaria thinks.
She moves a bit closer and tries to identify the aura.
Spellcraft: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6
Bojask has retired for the evening, yet you do give the nod to the other bouncers on staff, who wait and see how you handle the situation. Your rigid grip on the man cannot be thwarted, the man looks around at you expecting to see a brick-s!@& house behind him and is even more so taken aback at the strength you exude in your hold on him. He relaxes and goes with the flow as you maneuver him out the door. Samson's presence and guttural growl causing the man to gulp down an imaginary apple in his throat.
|Tippy Fullbottle
|Ascaria de Vintre
|Marcus Whiteshae
|Valius Coreton
Valius skips the next round of betting will he looks about towards the private rooms in the southwest corner. He hopes to catch just a glimmer of Gaedren.
"What? What was that?" he asks the halfling catching on a bit of the stuttered conversation.
Perception 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6
Will bet again next round.
|Ethaniel Meveri
Yes, you do successfully lift another coin bag and this one seems particularly heavy. From your experience, even if you lift a heavy purse successfully, the mark usually realises it sooner than if it were a lite purse.