SouthOfTheBorder

I’ve met him. Very hot, sexy & friendly. He travels a lot. One of the more personable & genuinely engaging guys I’ve met. He’s very into ff, which is not my thing - very skilled in the basics. Yes, his oral talents are extraordinary.

As is true with most things - you get what you pay for. “Free” isn’t free when you’ve wasted hours & then disappointed. And then there are the predators, with bad intentions. Not worth it. I stick with providers only these days & it’s so much easier. I can’t remember the last time I was disappointed w a provider.

American public schools (not colleges/universities) are a mess in both urban cities and rural areas - routinely producing students that are far behind students in other countries - especially in math & science. This is not new, but rather a trend for last 15-20 years. The exception would be very wealthy areas with property taxes to support their relatively small schools & where they can exert more control. American colleges & universities routinely outperform other countries and many foreigners arrive in the US for advanced education. The government doesn’t owe people jobs - that’s for private industry and they generally go where they can get a talented and educated work force….at least for the very best jobs. Silicon Valley developed because of its proximity to Stanford, one of the best universities in the world. Not complicated. a tongue lashing ? How about they don’t complain about their own life choices & take some personal responsibility ?

yup - if born w disability or become disabled/serious chronic illness before or during prime earning years, you're pretty much screwed and can lose everything. Half of bankruptcies are because of medical bills.

Below are Worlds 20 Most Dangerous Cities determined by homicides per capita. St Louis & Baltimore both make the list. Interesting there no European or Asian cities included. Basically, dangerous cities are in Mexico, Brazil, Venezuela & the United States.

actually, the dangerous list used a threshold of 100,000 for “city” population. The safest list used 300,000 as threshold. The methodology is all described on the link in previous post. As mentioned- you can use different sources and get essentially the same lists with St Louis, Memphis, Detroit, Cleveland among the most dangerous. NYC as an example, is never on those lists because it’s extremely safe by any measure - and that is the exact opposite of what most people think due to the reporting of NYC crime. Crimes in NYC are routinely sensationalized because it’s the largest US city & the center of national media. Those type stories will always get people to read it. A random knife attack in St Louis, Detroit or Memphis will not be reported nationally because no cares about those cities. And that’s how perceptions about big cities are manipulated by the media. A knife attack in Philadelphia at Macys will absolutely be reported nationally because people will read the story and talk about it - which is exactly what happened in this forum. When is the last time you read about individual violent murders in St Louis ? Even tho that city ranks more dangerous than several violent cities in Mexico & Brazil. You won’t read about St Louis because nobody cares about it. That’s the point.

this is the key - you were willing to move to a big city with opportunity. and you had an education and the people that stay almost never do better and then are resentful/bitter about “being left behind” - even though that was their choice. They don’t see it as a choice, however. that’s exactly how it works & adds more texture to the answer/question it’s an entirely different equation for native-born Americans & immigrants, based on the circumstances & expectations.

Forbes noted that they used “cities” with populations of 300,000+ and then based on per capita findings. There are several ways to compare cities & regions - using an expanded region would pull in suburbs and likely make the numbers look better. Most common comparisons are either the municipal boundaries that define an exact city (like NYC, which consists of 5 boroughs only) or a regional term which is DMA (designated market area, which pulls in exact suburban areas and matches the geographic area commonly used to analyze television/radio market coverage). Either way, not everyone will agree on methodology based on their unique knowledge of individual cities & regions. It’s a standardized process to make things neutral when building data comparisons. Making the threshold city low at 300,000 probably pulled small areas into the mix that just have exceptionally high crime. Im not sure that matters tho as I live in NYC, and I don’t mix in area of 8M people, more like several hundred thousand that live in close proximity. The area I live in is probably much safer than reflected in overall NYC data. You can cross reference this list to other high crime city lists and likely get very similar results, with a few outliers which are probably the small cities. The bigger point is the cities you would expect to find on the high crime list are not there at all, like NYC & Los Angeles. Of course, that doesn’t match the narrative about big cities being the epicenter of violent crime in America. The truth is it’s the small to mid-sized cities that have exceptionally high violent crime and are dangerous. You’re much more likely to encounter violent crime in St Louis, Memphis, Cleveland or Baton Rouge than Manhattan - any way you slice it.

From Forbes - Philadelphia, is indeed ranked one of the 15 most dangerous US cities. NYC is among the safest https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurabegleybloom/2023/01/31/report-ranks-americas-15-safest-and-most-dangerous-cities-for-2023/

I used to go to Philly frequently for business and stayed in Center City many times 2012 - 2017. I didn't seem unsafe at all then, day or night. I had several clients in that area & never heard any concerns about crime or personal safety. maybe I got lucky or misread the environment. Or, things have changed in last few years. the stabbings are horrific without question. these types of crimes generate headlines that go national & then influence the overall perception of safety. I don't know the Philly crime stats, but similarly in NYC - the subway violence paints NY as crime ridden, when it's actually very safe in context of per capita violent crime in US cities. NYC isn't even in Top 20. The national media makes it seem different because sensational headlines attract viewers/clicks/readers & that equals money. It's right to report the crimes of course - but as usual it's always in the details which most people can't process.

agree - fantastic city. world-class architecture & a great city for food. everything from the most sophisticated restaurants to famous deep-dish pizza !!

yes - although I don’t think links to providers are allowed anymore. I tried to paste it here & no luck. Just search Mega on RM & you’ll find him. Looks like he’s in Japan now - but he will return to NY

the US air-traffic control system is in crisis- according to air-traffic controllers its not about near-misses https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/02/business/air-traffic-controllers-safety.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare Drunk and Asleep on the Job: Air Traffic Controllers Pushed to the Brink

a providers personal life is private - very rude to ask questions that aren’t relevant to the appointment. I’d say if a client asks an out-of-bounds question, then no obligation to be truthful

the issue is the expectations - not the gift-giving or lack thereof expectations will always let you down. It’s better to have none at all & then maybe be pleasantly surprised by the unexpected I don’t like receiving gifts, not even from my husband. I accept gifts politely, but completely unnecessary - and then it should be done privately, never with anyone else present. It’s not a spectacle and I don’t want to perform on cue. Birthdays are blown wildly out-of-proportion for adults and really, this is a thing for children. Cards are sufficient if anything at all.

agree - he is one of the very best. You cannot go wrong with him. Probably my all time favorite. He’s not in NY 100% of the time, but always returns

agree - it’s basically a circuit party now w overpriced everything by Mexican standards. It’s still beautiful during winter, but full of everything I generally want to get away from.

the average one-hour European rate is 150euros, give or take 50 in some circumstances. The US one hour rate is more like $300, give or take 50. I’d pay equivalent of 150euros in PV - I wouldn’t pay $300. Obviously an individual choice tho.

the visible gun & bullets in a restaurant made me uncomfortable. It was obvious others were uncomfortable too. this is not a political point. I’d rather not be in restaurants where people are carrying weapons. And I don’t think it’s a stretch to assume if carrying a weapon openly, there is some idea of fear & need for protection. Otherwise, what is the point ? and yup, that guy probably had a small dick too. I never thought about that until now - thanks for making the connection. re: small dicks & exotic cars…..that’s backed up by research. the average dick is 6” or less erect. the world is full of smaller than average dicks and that’s not “nasty”. it’s like being tall or short - it is what it is. because of most men’s obsession with dick size it becomes a complicated subject. given the core subject matter of this forum however, it’s really not surprising it comes up frequently in various contexts. sorry if this is triggering for some people. it was not intended that way.

this is the problem with AirBnBs - and it depends on the type of AirBnB. If it’s in a single family home, then no problem. If it’s in a residential multi-unit building, then that is a problem IMO. Both owners & renters usually have to go through a background screening process to get into many buildings these days. The assumption is when owners/renters have gone through this process, then there is a certain level of additional safety in the building and those people are then responsible for the guests they allow to enter the premises. AirBnB turns that idea upside down - with AirBnb renters there is only screening based on that persons reviews and no responsibility for the guests they might bring in. While @Simon Suraci may be a responsible AirBnB guest, many are not. Owners/renters generally don’t want a revolving door of unknown people coming in/out of the place they call home. Many of these buildings have no security whatsoever and that opens the door to all kinds of issues. One of the buildings I live in has 3 units that can be used for AirBnB (only because the building changed the rules after the fact) and those apartments create all the problems. The neighbors all know exactly what is going on in those units - not rocket science. If there are multiple visitors at all hours, then it’s probably drug-dealing or sex-work. Thats just the truth. And the neighbors will be complaining to the building management and whomever owns the unit. FYI - cameras are so small & tiny now where it would be difficult to know if the host has a camera or not. Once the host has been burned once or twice, you’re likely being watched.

I grew up there too, and continued to go back for my parents. after they passed, no reason to return I had to do a drive through rural America this summer. Guns in holsters with belts full of bullets in a chain restaurant (Ruby Tuesdays) in N Carolina. No thanks they seem to be very afraid of something - I’m just not sure what it is

PV has become a destination for foreign providers (non-Mexican) catering to visiting tourists. Most of the those visiting providers bring their home country rates with them - and it tends to influence the overall rates in PV, meaning rates are higher than you would expect. In that situation, I’d go for the locals. All depends on want you want tho - if there is a visiting American provider that you can’t resist, be ready to pay US rates.

I think it depends on context. If they want a pic before appointment scheduling, then no. If they want a pic after appointment confirmed, then I’d probably send it because I can understand it from a security point of view - but I would only do that if meeting the person at their home or hotel. Scheduling with a new provider requires a certain amount of trust. If you’re going into their environment whether home or hotel - they could easily record the entire session and you’d never know. Thats the reality.

that is not the American way - right now, Americans owe $1trillion in credit card debt at over 20% interest https://www.lendingtree.com/credit-cards/credit-card-debt-statistics/

LOL - Welcome to Florida 'We do not have insurance. We have an insurance bill': Condos hit with 563% rate increase Tom Baker has written to all 160 Florida state lawmakers as well as 15 news organizations about condo owners dealing with huge insurance rate hikes. Read in USA TODAY: https://apple.news/ANAoDU0JKSfuT2a22MM0OnQ Shared from Apple News